Revenge of the Red Lotus
by Darthlane
Summary: Set after Legend of Korra. Now that Korra and Asami Sato have left to the Spirit World the Order of the Red Lotus have come out of hiding. They want to take advantage of her disappearance and a weakened Republic City to take over the world. I do not own Legend of Korra.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello any and all viewers! In the third chapter of my other story, Dragon of the West, I promised that a surprise was on the way. I give you a new story that takes place right after Legend of Korra ends, about the rise of the resurgent Red Lotus. I hope you like it. Also, like Dragon of the West I will try to remain faithful to the canon so I'm not about to majorly change any big details from Legend of Korra. Enjoy!**

**-Darthlane**

Revenge of the Red Lotus

Chapter 1

Avatar Korra and Asami Sato gently reached for each other and connected their hands. Together they stepped into the bright golden light of the Spirit Portal. Before they faded they turned to face each other and gazed into each other's eyes. Slight smiles grew on both of their faces as they enjoyed their moment together. To anyone watching, it might appear that they were more than friends. Then they disappeared, almost as if they had never been there to begin with.

Far away, on the roof of one of the tallest buildings in Republic City, two men watched the Avatar and her new girlfriend vanish. Both wore pale wide brimmed hats and blood red cloaks over loose fitting black clothes. One, the taller of the two, stood on the very edge of the building. He began putting away his binoculars as Korra and Asami disappeared. His companion lay a few meters away, resting.

"Are they gone already?" The second man asked. "I swear we just got here. They didn't take long to get out of town."

The taller man looked down at his friend with disdain. "Get up, you lazy fool." He spoke with a slow drawl. "The Avatar is gone, so now is the time to act. We have to get back to Goru as soon as possible for our orders."

The second man dismissed his companion's words with a wave of a hand. "I don't care what Goru thinks we should do. I'm not scared of Goru like you seem to be. He isn't that scary at all. Honestly, you would make a better leader of the Red Lotus. If it came to it I would back you."

"Again you show your ignorance, Inagi. Goru is much more powerful than either of us, as well as wiser. He deserves to be the one to bring eternal peace to the world. For now, at least, I am merely a pawn."

Inagi clambered to his feet and said, "Whatever you say, Terus. Go ahead and be a pawn. I'm just saying that I haven't seen him do much but sit in dark rooms and give us orders. Not the best example, if you know what I mean. Not really doing the leading part of being a leader, you know?" He stretched. "He had better give us something interesting to do." The duo disappeared down a set of stairs in the center of the building.

They travelled down the building until they eventually exited at the ground. By now it was becoming nighttime. They walked the devastated streets of Republic City without fear. They were too powerful to be worried about thieves or police attempting to stop them.

After travelling several blocks they entered a different building, a small one that had more underground than above. They descended down the poorly lit stairs several floors before heading down a dark hall.

Terus and Inagi entered the room where their leader waited. The room was too dark to see much more than his eyes in the shadows. They approached his ornate chair and bowed down at his feet.

"O great Lotus, we have arrived to receive our orders." Terus said humbly. After a moment the two men stood up again. "We have news you would be very interested in."

"You don't need to bow to me." Goru said as he stood up and walked forward, entering the light. He was a man in his late forties with long shaggy black hair and a thick beard. He was tall but not so much that he towered over people. "I'm not a king and I don't pretend to be."

"Thank the spirits." Inagi muttered under his breath. He walked over to a nearby wall and slid down to a sitting position. He always seemed to be resting.

"But shouldn't we give you the respect you deserve as our leader?" Terus asked. "How can we separate ourselves from the masses unless we make an example with our behavior?"

"I'm telling you Terus, you are way too formal." Inagi said to his partner. "You aren't in the Fire Nation anymore. The manners aren't necessary."

Terus glared. "No one asked your opinion, Inagi."

"He's right, Terus." Goru said. "You're among friends. Relax a little."

Terus sighed and took off his wide brimmed hat, revealing a handsome but grim face with cold grey eyes hidden by a mass of shoulder length dark hair.

Goru smiled at the brooding man. "See? Doesn't that feel better?" When Terus didn't answer, he asked, "So why the surprise visit?"

"It's the Avatar. She has left to the Spirit World for an unknown amount of time." Terus informed. After a moment he added, "With the Sato girl."

Goru's eyebrows went up. "Really?" He stroked his beard, thinking. "Yes, it's what I have been waiting for. The Avatar has finally disappeared." His eyes lit up and he grinned evilly. "We can finally strike."

He moved with surprising speed to the door. "Come! We must gather the others." They both moved in a blur to follow him. With the other two Red Lotus members following close behind, Goru said, "By leaving, Avatar Korra has left the world open for us to begin our plans. It is time for the Red Lotus to assemble and begin our plans."

"Wait, wait, wait." Inagi said, confused. "Hold up. Why are we doing this now? Why didn't we just do this before? I mean, she was injured for three years. Three damn years and we are acting now? What's so different about now?"

Instead of answering Goru glanced at Terus. "I know he's new. He joined what, a month ago, didn't he?"" Goru said to Terus. "Have you had time to tell him what our goal is?"

"I've tried. He doesn't like to listen much." Terus said.

Goru stopped and turned to Inagi. "The reason we didn't strike before is because we were waiting for the world to stabilize itself again. As powerful as we are we can't reassemble whole nations by ourselves. We had to wait. A lot of things changed three years ago, with the spirits arriving and the Earth Queen's death and all. The Earth Kingdom collapsed and much of the world fell into chaos. The world needed time to adapt to that change. We were waiting for peace to return to the Earth Kingdom, which Kuvira did a very good job accomplishing. The problem was, right after the Earth Kingdom, my bad, the Earth Empire was unified once more, Avatar Korra reappeared. Naturally we couldn't come out of hiding then. The Avatar is much too powerful. But now that she is gone again we are ready and the world is ours to mold."

"So why did we need to wait for the Earth Kingdom to get its shit together to start? I don't see how that has much to do with destroying the White Lotus."

Goru chuckled. "So that's what you think we're doing? Destroying the White Lotus? No, no. We," he motioned to the three of them, "are trying to do what no one else has accomplished before. We are trying to bring world peace. Yes, it will involve destroying our errant brothers, but only because they will be sure to try to get in our way."

"World peace?" Inagi asked. "Really? I assumed we were out to destroy the whole damn map. I thought peace and all that was Avatar preachings. Heck, I thought the White Lotus wanted that."

Goru nodded. "They do, and so do we. We all want the same thing. It's just that they are confused as to how to achieve it. Ozai and his ancestors already proved that peace among four nations won't last. What we have now, what they have built in their error, will fall. More likely sooner than later."

Inagi nodded. "I get that. But what is your idea? How do I know your plans are any better?"

"Do not speak so disrespectfully to him!" Terus hissed. His hand raised in threat. Inagi backed up quickly. He knew all too well what Terus was capable of.

"It's alright, Terus." Goru said softly. "I understand his doubt." Turning back to Inagi, he said, "What I want is to unite everyone together. All must become one, and through that one may become all. That is the only way to achieve lasting peace. As long as we remain divided as the four Nations, bender and nonbender, and even human and spirit. . ." he let his words hang in the air for a moment. "we will never find peace. As long as we remain divided and different there will always be war and suffering. It is how humans operate."

Inagi nodded slowly. "So we are gonna unite everyone? Cool. Let's make it happen."

The three men continued on their way down the dark hall deep in the building they were hidden in. They eventually entered a small dimly lit room. There was only a single table with a phone on it. Goru picked it up and dialed a number. After a moment someone answered. "Hello? Who is this?"

Goru asked the other person, "What grows as it feeds but dies as it drinks?"

There was a pause before the person answered, "A fire. What is the occasion, Goru?"

"It is beginning, Setta. The Avatar is gone and the time to strike is now. Come here. Bring Jiqi with you. Our revolution will soon be at hand."

"We'll be there soon, Goru." The person on the other end, Setta, hung up.

Goru dialed a different number. "Yes?" A much deeper voice answered. Goru asked the same riddle and the other Red Lotus member answered correctly.

"Come here, Tymo. All of the Red Lotus are on their way. The time for our new world has come. Bring Lyri."

"Finally." Tymo said before he hung up as well.

"Are you ready my brothers?" Goru asked as they returned to his chamber where he had been waiting before. "The time is coming and we shall bring the world into a new age!"

Neither man answered. Terus was too absorbed in planning the future of the Red Lotus, thinking of every stray detail. Inagi, however was barely listening, not caring for Goru's excitement. His lack of attention was not lost on Terus, who glared daggers at his partner.

Soon the others arrived. The first pair, a man encased in a metal suit named Jiqi and a girl no older than fifteen named Setta, arrived first.

Jiqi's suit was much smaller and more refined than the mechasuits Varrick had invented. It looked rather plain, but it was completely filled with all sorts of weapons and contraptions that could pop out for use at a moment's notice. Jiqi took a great deal of pride in the knowledge that his own suit was stronger, faster, more precise, and generally superior to the mechasuits produced by Varrick and Asami Sato. Despite this, bringing up any of the famous inventors of recent years was a sore spot for him.

Setta was a young girl but looked even younger than her age. She was adorable at first sight, but in reality she was a cold blooded sadist. She had really short red hair and she hardly ever smiled. When she did it was usually at the pain of others.

Jiqi instantly marched over to Inagi. "I don't think we've met. Who are you?" Before Inagi even answered Jiqi raised his metal hand and a static shock jumped out and struck Inagi before he could dodge. He writhed around on the ground for a moment before the shock wore off. In the struggle his hat flew off finally revealing his face. It was covered in many bandages wrapped entirely around his head. The only parts visible were his eyes, a brown so bright they were almost orange.

"What the hell? You asshole! Is that how you always greet people?" Inagi exclaimed as he clambered back to his feet.

"What's with the wrappings? Do you have something to hide?" Jiqi asked. "Is something wrong with your face?"

"Yeah!" Inagi snarled. "You're too close to it." He shoved Jiqi back and put his hat back on. "Just leave me alone."

Jiqi shrugged and turned to Goru. "What's the job, boss? Are we finally gonna blow some shit up?"

Goru nodded. "It's likely, but I would like you to try to damage as little as possible. We'll be the ones that have to pick up after words."

"Sure." Jiqi said. "Whatever you say, boss."

The final pair of Red Lotus members entered. Lyri and Tymo had been married happily for several years. Lyri was tall and elegant with flowing movements, long raven hair, and an enchanting smile. Tymo was a monster of a man, pure muscle. He towered over everyone except the late P'Li. His face was crisscrossed with a huge number of scars. Sometimes it was hard to find his mouth among the network of lines.

"Hello, everyone!" Tymo said happily. "It's good to see you all." Everyone but Setta, who tended to stay quiet, answered his greeting. When they had all quieted down all eyes turned to Goru.

"Everyone," he began, "today is the day we have been waiting for. Avatar Korra has left for the Spirit World, and the Earth Kingdom is united once more. Our dream of world peace is within reach. But we must guide the world in the right direction. We cannot afford mistakes now." He paused before continuing. "I have missions for all three teams. Each mission is vital, so do not treat them lightly."

"Setta, Jiqi, you two don't need to travel far. All I need you to do is send a message. Wake up the masses. See what damage you can do to Republic City, and be sure to drop the name Red Lotus. Simple."

He cleared his throat. "Terus, Inagi, your mission is very important. Very important. I think our imprisoned brother has spent long enough incarcerated. Zaheer is your mission. Free him and bring him back."

"Finally, Tymo and Lyri. You have the toughest job. In fact a lot hinges on if you are successful or not. Are you ready?"

"Of course we are, Goru." Lyri said. "Do you not have faith in us?" She squeezed her husband's hand.

"It's not any doubt in my faith in you, but the certainty of the difficulty of your task." Goru said solemnly. "I need you to kill Fire Lord Zuko."

Lyri smiled. "Consider it done." The couple was no stranger to death; they had been assassinating people together for years.

"Do not underestimate him, Lyri." Goru warned. "Even in his old age he is one of the most powerful people in the world. He is craftier than you could possibly imagine and is merciless. If you make a mistake he won't give you the chance to make another."

"No one I have ever faced has ever had the power to bring me down." Tymo said. "And I don't expect that streak to end now, no matter how powerful Lord Zuko is."

"Just be careful." Goru said softly. "Meet back here when you are done, everyone. We are close to victory. Close to a new world." He raised a fist into the air and said, "To victory!"

"To victory!" Everyone chanted back.

"To peace!" Goru said to his followers.

"To peace!" They answered.

Lastly he called out, "To the Red Lotus!"

Their voices rang throughout the room. "To the Red Lotus!"

He smiled and said, "Let's start a revolution."

**Thank you for reading the first chapter of my story! I really hope you liked it! Let me know what you thought with reviews! If you really liked this story, I hope you favorite and/or follow it! And don't forget to come to the dark side(we have cookies!).**

**-Darthlane**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! I'm back with another chapter of Revenge of the Red Lotus! The villains are going to take a backseat while we find out what happened to our heroes since Kuvira did the thing. Where are they now? How is Republic City reacting to the destruction Kuvira caused? Find out here!**

** -Darthlane**

Chapter 2

**Tenzin**

Oogi the Sky Bison landed lightly on the grass of Air Temple Island. His riders, Tenzin, Bumi, Bolin, and Opal, began to groggily get of the bison. It had been a long day of fixing and building and everyone was exhausted as a result. A moment later Pepper, another Sky Bison, landed next to Oogi, carrying Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, and Kai. They were just as tired of the hard work they had been doing.

Not long after Kuvira had surrendered, Tenzin had volunteered the Airbenders to help out in the reconstruction of Republic City. President Raiko had been ecstatic. Because the fiascos that had happened since his inauguration in office, Raiko had been hanging onto his job by a string. Most people believed he would be kicked out of office within weeks. The only reason he was still in office was because Tenzin and others had vouched for him. Tenzin didn't always agree with the man, but he didn't think Raiko should be fired for bad luck. It wasn't his fault that Vaatu, Kuvira, and others had attacked the city. Tenzin was willing to give him one last chance.

"I didn't think I would ever get this sore again after surviving Tenzin's Airbender death camp. This is just ridiculous." Bumi said as he popped his back.

"Who knew fixing things could be such a pain." Kai complained. "Wouldn't it have been smarter to get Earthbenders for this job? Airbending isn't exactly the best suited for putting stuff together like that."

Bolin glared at the boy. "Just be glad that you can't Earthbend. I have had to do everything! Can you even imagine what it's like for me? I end up doing all the hard work!"

"Don't you even BEGIN to say you're doing all the work!" Opal said as she bunched the back of Bolin's shirt in her hand. Bolin tried to get away but her grip was like iron. "I saw you sneak off with Varrick and Meelo at least four times!"

"We were taking breaks!" Bolin hissed as he was choked by his own collar. He tried to break her grip but was met with no success.

"No one else got any breaks. Why do you think you should get one?" Opal asked.

"I'm sorryyyyyyy!" Bolin squealed. He was starting to go purple in the face.

"That's enough, Opal." Tenzin said. She immediately released her boyfriend. "That's not how an Airbender should act. You have to show restraint and always strive for peaceful solutions."

Opal bowed her head slightly. "I'm sorry, Master Tenzin. I'll make sure to do better in the future."

As the rest of the group walked to the temple that the Airbenders called home, Tenzin told Opal quietly with a twinkle in his eyes, "A much better way to deal with Bolin is to keep track of his mistakes and remind him of them when you can get something out of it."

Opal grinned. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

There was a small crowd of people waiting for them at the entrance of Tenzin's home. Pema, Rohan, and a bunch of the less experienced Airbenders greeted the returning group.

"Tenzin!" Pema cried as husband and wife embraced each other. "Did it go well?" She asked. Behind them the rest of the group were making their way inside.

Tenzin sighed wearily and said, "Today went about as well as you could expect. We committed an outrageous amount of work for only a little bit of success. I spent the whole day trying to separate Jinora and Kai while also making sure Meelo didn't try to drink any paint. Meanwhile Varrick isn't willing to lift a finger but kept telling us to tear down anything we actually managed to build so that he could add some tech nonsense at the bottom. Don't even get me started on Bumi. He kept trying to trick people passing by to do the work for him. I swear, Ikki was the only one putting in a genuine effort."

Pema squeezed his hand. "Don't stress yourself out over it, Tenzin. We all survived a catastrophe. Maybe we need a rest. It might do you some good to have a little bit of fun with them. Have some laughs."

Tenzin looked at her in surprise. "Have some fun? I do have fun!"

Pema snorted. "If anything, I'd say you hate fun."

"I don't hate fun!" Tenzin cried. "He tugged at his beard in different directions."See? Fun!"

Pema smiled lovingly and took his hand. "Whatever you say. Let's go inside, it's chilly out here." Together they walked inside.

**Mako**

The thief dashed off the street into a demolished ally. Mako and his partner, Soshi, were hot in pursuit. The thief had stolen a bunch of expensive objects out of a house down the street. Unfortunately for him, Mako and his partner had been passing by on the way to the station when the thief had burst from the home with the stolen goods overloading his arms.

As the thief ran his loot was slipping, object by breakable object hitting the ground. Mako, despite the lack of exercise he had gotten since he had been protecting Prince Wu, was steadily gaining on the criminal.

Soshi wasn't handling the chase quite as well. The man was overweight and climbing into his mid forties. He had a good heart and really cared about making Republic City a better place. He had joined the police force soon after Kuvira had destroyed half the city. He had said that the devastation he had seen had motivated him to fix his hometown. Unfortunately, he wasn't well suited to the tougher parts of being a cop. He didn't have a mean bone in his body, and those bones weren't that athletic either. If either of them was going to catch this guy it would be Mako.

The thief looked back and saw Mako catching up. Frightened, he dropped the rest of the stolen objects. He knew that avoiding being arrested was more important than the temptation of holding onto the stuff he had stolen. He cut around the corner onto another street, this one practically empty. Mako and Soshi were close behind.

As he passed a puddle, the thief whirled around and the water moved with his hand movements. A Waterbender. The puddle spread out behind the thief and froze over, several feet wide and long. It was a good move by the thief. It was slippery, so the obstacle was perfect for slowing down pursuers.

Mako reacted quickly and jumped before he could slip. He realized that he wasn't going to make it all the way and oriented himself into a dive. Before he hit the ground his good hand shot out and pushed against the ice covered ground, launching him up again. His somersault allowed him to cross the rest of the way and land on his feet in a fluid motion.

Soshi, however, didn't react as quickly. He slipped with a mighty crash and slid a few feet before coming to a stop. He groaned loudly in pain.

Mako hesitated. He didn't want to abandon Soshi. His partner could be hurt. But, if he stayed to check on his friend, the thief would get away. Mako reasoned that Soshi probably only had a bruise at most. He continued to chase the thief and hoped he made the right choice.

"Stop!" He shouted. "You are wanted for custody!" The thief ignored him. Mako hadn't really expected him to stop anyway. "Stop now! I promise you, if you continue to resist your sentence will be much worse. Please be reasonable!"

Mako's words had no effect. Mako knew he would have to resort to force. He shot a fireball over the thief's shoulder to show that he meant business. The thief might've sped up a bit, but he showed no sign of stopping. No longer having a choice, Mako fired a series of flames from his right hand at the fleeing thief. Several hit the man and caused serious burns, but weren't enough to stop him.

Desperate, the thief spotted a fountain across the street. He changed direction to his new source of water. Mako had to hurry. He wasn't sure he could beat this guy with just one hand. He fired a flurry of attacks from his three usable limbs. The water flowed out of the fountain and formed a wall of water that blocked Mako's fire attacks.

The thief turned to face Mako for the first time, only to smile confidently. He wore a mask that covered the upper half of his head. He had no mustache or other identifiable features on what was visible of his face

Mako hesitated. A Waterbender with a large amount of water wasn't someone he wanted to face injured. The thief noticed his hesitation and said, "What? Scared now that I have some water? Are all police cowards, or just you?"

"I'm not a coward!" Angrily, Mako lashed out with a burst of flame. It was powerful enough to break through the water and the thief ducked out of the way. He was quickly responding with an attack of his own, forcing Mako to defend himself. They both send flurries of water and fire at each other in an elemental storm. They dodged, weaved, and blocked each other's attacks, moving in an elaborate dance.

They were stuck in a stalemate, something that really wore on Mako's nerves. If he was at full strength he knew he could have creamed this guy. But he wasn't, and he would have to find a way to deal with it.

Mako struck a flame at the thief's feet, making him jump. Then Mako sent a powerful fire blast at him. The thief managed to bring up a shield of water to cushion the blow but he was still struck back into a wall. He was still weakly trying to fight on so Mako fired another blast at him to end this battle and arrest the thief.

But he made a mistake. He had unconsciously tried Firebending using his left hand. His injured hand. He felt an intense pain ripple down that arm. Instead of flames, electricity shot out of his hand. Fortunately for the thief, spasms threw his aim way off and the destructive energy struck the ground in between them, creating a small crater. Mako collapsed as his body shuddered and spasmed from electrical shocks.

Seeing his chance, the thief ran away into the shadows and disappeared.

Soshi found Mako minutes later lying in the water the battle had left. He was shuddering occasionally. He didn't look good at all. "Don't worry, Mako. Buddy. I got you." He lifted him up and began walking him in the direction of Lin Beifong's police station. "I'm gonna get you some help, don't you worry." But by then Mako had fallen unconscious from the agony.

Mako woke up disoriented and in pain. The most pain he had been in since he had blown up the reactor in Kuvira's giant mechasuit. That had almost killed him, so he wondered how close he was to death now. The pain was especially fierce in his left arm. It felt like it had burned skin from his flesh a second time. He thought about checking under the noticeably darkened bandages to check, but he figured that would probably do more harm than good.

He looked around and realized that he was in the police station. He was sitting in a chair in the corner of the largest room of the station, facing the back wall. How had he gotten here? He remembered that he had been walking with Soshi and then they had seen that thief. The thief! Mako's head swiveled around to the jail cell behind him. The thief wasn't in there. That meant that he must have gotten away. Mako felt a flush of anger and disappointment knowing that he had failed. He was a better cop than this!

"Hey Chief! He's awake." A voice said. It was Soshi, Mako realized. He turned to see Lin and a few other cops approaching him.

"Mako! You're awake!" Lin said, concerned. "What happened out there?"

"Oh, well, me and Soshi ran into this thief-"Mako began before Lin cut him off.

"I already know!" She exclaimed. "Soshi told us everything. I want to know what happened to you and why he got away. What happened?"

It took Mako a moment to remember what had gone down. "I chased him down but he reached a fountain. He was a Waterbender. We fought and I had him beat, but I tried to Firebend and something went wrong. I don't know how, but it was like I electrocuted myself or something. Then I woke up here."

"So you tried to Firebend and you hurt yourself?" Lin asked. "You're sure?"

"I guess so." Mako said. "There was no other way that it could have been caused. I think it might be because of my injuries somehow."

Lin's brow furrowed in worry. "We can't know for sure until we get Katara or another great healer to check your hand out. Until then, I can't have you on duty out there."

"What?" Mako exclaimed. "You can't do that to me!"

"Mako, with your injury you could hurt yourself like you did today and cause some perp to get away or even destroy your hand the rest of the way. You could end up hurting your friends or even killing someone. Until you're all fixed up I can't let you do anything that could make you spark up again."

"But that was just a mental mistake." Mako pleaded. "It just slipped my mind for a moment that-"

"Exactly." Lin said sharply. "You lost your focus for just a moment and it ended with you writhing in pain on the ground. Do you realize that you made a three-and-a-half foot deep hole in the ground? What if someone had been standing there? If you forget for a moment, just a moment, you could kill someone. Concentrating on not using your left hand for bending has to be constant, and in battle it's easy to lose concentration. Someone could die if you make the slightest mistake. I can't let that happen to the people of this city." She waited a moment for him to fight back, but he knew this was a fight he couldn't win. Her tone softened and she said, "I'm sorry, Mako. Just do everyone a favor and let us handle it for now. You can still work here at the station until you're all healed up. Handle interrogations or something. "

"Yes ma'am." He said quietly. He stared down at the frayed cast that covered his left forearm.

"Hey, don't worry about it, buddy." Soshi said as he clasped Mako on the shoulder, causing him to wince in pain. "I'll request to be transferred to desk duty so you won't be lonely."

Mako smiled weakly and said, "Thanks. I appreciate that."

A cop suddenly burst into the police station. "Eveyone! There was just an explosion downtown!"

Lin and the rest of the cops rushed outside. Only Mako and Soshi remained. Mako could barely hear some of what they were saying. "Huge!... Look at that... President's... We're gonna need... Call everyone... Let's go!"

They ran off towards the sudden catastrophe.

Knowing he was probably going to regret this later, Mako stood up and dashed to the doorway.

"Wha- Mako! Where are you going?" Soshi shouted.

"I'm going to help out." Mako called back over his shoulder.

"But Mako! She's going to kill you for this! Just stay!"

Mako ignored him and made his way to the explosion. The other cops hadn't been kidding; a strangely magnificent huge explosion had ripped open the top floor where President Raiko usually conducted his business. A rain of fire showered down on the streets surrounding the building, already starting what could turn into a disaster for the whole city. Mako had to go and help. Even if it lost him his job.

**That's a wrap folks! What do you think of that? Mako is willing to sacrifice his police career in the hopes that he can help people and the Red Lotus have struck their first blow to Republic City. Let me know what you think with a review! Don't forget to favorite and follow! And remember: come to the dark side(we have cookies!).**

** -Darthlane**


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back to another chapter of Revenge Of The Red Lotus! If you are reading this for the first time, welcome! I hope you like it. If you have been keeping up with this story, I really appreciate it. It's good to know someone is actually interested. So, We left off with Mako finding out about just how much his injury from taking down Kuvira's giant mecha has limited him. Meanwhile, Tenzin and the other Airbenders, along with a certain Earthbender, have begun cleaning up and repairing a damaged Republic City. But now that the Red Lotus are back and have struck their first blow, how will our heroes respond? Will Mako still be able to find a use for himself? Is Raiko alive? Just how powerful are the resurgent Red Lotus members? Find out now!**

** -Darthlane**

Chapter 3

**Bolin**

Bolin was woken up by an evil force he had still yet to get used to: Tenzin's kids. Ikki and Meelo burst into his room and jumped onto his unconscious body. "Bolin! Bolin! You need to wake up!" They shouted at him. "Get up right now Bolin! Wake up!"

"Please." He grumbled. "Just give me a few more minutes." He refused to open his eyes.

"You have to get up, Bolin!" Ikki pleaded. "Dad needs you!"

"Yeah." Meelo added. "There was an explosion in town! It was awesome!"

That woke Bolin up. "Whaaaat? What do you mean there was an explosion? Where at?" He struggled out of his bed and onto his feet.

"It was in Republic City." Ikki informed him. "We're not sure where. Hurry up! Dad needs everyone that can help." She tugged at his arm.

"Wait a minute, Ikki." Bolin said. "I need to get dressed. Go ahead and get some more people or something."

As soon as they left he was frantically getting dressed. He knew Tenzin and the others would need him as soon as possible. As soon as his boots were laced up he burst out the door.  
He ran outside and found Tenzin preparing a reluctant and tired Oogi. Jinora, Kya, and Bumi were already out there, similarly tired but all wore worried faces.

"What's going on?" Bolin asked. "Meelo and Ikki said something about an explosion."

Bumi was the first one to answer. "Yeah, I saw an explosion light up the sky and a building was on fire. Tenzin reckons that it's from Raiko's office building. I'm not sure yet myself, I'll need a closer look. Actually, this kind of reminds me of something that happened back at Komodo Island a few years back. Me and the boys were stranded, and the local-"

Kya cut him off. "Not the time, Bumi. Why don't you see if you can help Tenzin?"

Bumi glared at his sister. "I don't see you helping him, Kya."

"I'm not an Airbender." Kya retorted. "You are supposed to know how to prepare a sky bison for travel. Please tell me you at least know that."

"What I do or don't know how to do is of no business to you." Bumi said with a huff.

"Will you two quit arguing?" Tenzin said angrily to his siblings. "I can't concentrate on what I'm doing with you two squabbling like that. It's chaotic. Just do me one favor and be quiet!"

"You want ME to be quiet?" Bumi asked as though offended. "After all the teasing I had to go through as a kid? It was always, 'Look at the cloud I morphed!' and 'Look, I can jump fifteen feet in the air!' Even now that I'm a breeze blower myself it's just, 'Make the wind stronger, Bumi!' and 'You call that airgliding?' I am down right sick of it!"

"I see where Ikki, Meelo, Rohan, and I get it from." Jinora whispered to Bolin as the older group of siblings argued. "They make our arguments look tame."

"I'm glad I only have one sibling." Bolin replied. "This kind of arguing is ridiculous."

Meelo, Ikki, Opal, and Kai appeared from the temple. "What happened?" Opal said. "They said something about an explosion."

"Because there was one in Republic City." Jinora informed. "Dad is going to check it out."

"We can't fit everyone on Oogi." Opal said. "Why did he get all of us?"

"Because I want you to take Juicy and Jinora to take Pepper." Tenzin said in between fits of arguing with his siblings. "Start getting them ready."

"Really?" Jinora asked. "You actually want us to go?" She indicated to herself and her siblings.

"I hate to say it," Tenzin said, "But I can't stop you from participating. You three helped in the fight against Kuvira, and if that's not a rite of passage then I don't know what is."

"I can't believe you would actually let us do this." Ikki said. "I thought you wouldn't have ever wanted us to go."

"Believe me, the last thing I want to do is put you in danger." Tenzin said. "But I have to respect that you are able to defend yourselves and that you can contribute to whatever we may have to do. You are growing up." Tenzin, Bumi, and Kya got on Oogi, who was now ready to leave. "Let Daw know Pema will be in charge until we get back, but he is in charge of defending Air Temple Island if it's needed." Then Oogi took off, the children of Aang riding him to Republic City.

Opal and Jinora began preparing their own bison for travel, the others helping. Jinora and Pepper left first, with Kai and Ikki. Juicy, with snot running out of his nostrils, was ready to go soon after that. Opal told Meelo to go inside and tell Pema and Daw what Tenzin had said. As soon as he got back Juicy took off, Opal, Bolin, and Meelo riding.

"Let's go kick some butt!" Meelo shouted over the wind.

"We don't even know if there is anyone whose butt we need to kick." Opal shouted. "It could have been an accident."

As they got high enough to see past the temple they saw the fire lit building. "Opal honey, that doesn't look like an accident." Bolin said. What he saw made him shudder. It reminded him way too much of what the skyline of Republic City had looked like after Kuvira's attack. "I think someone tried to kill President Raiko." He didn't add that he had a feeling they might have succeeded.

**Mako**

Mako finally arrived at the burning building exhausted. In hindsight he wished he had driven here, but he had been in such a rush he had forgotten he had more options than his legs.  
There were cops and medics running around everywhere near the building, and an army of benders had entered inside trying to evacuate anyone who was still in there and to try to put out the fire. It was chaotic and Mako couldn't make out any familiar faces in the dark streets.

He decided the best way to help was to get as many people as he could out of that building. He ran inside and climbed the stairs. He ran by several scared workers leaving in a hurry. After many exhausting stories of stairs he reached a floor that he didn't see anyone else helping. Parts of this floor were on fire, and smoke was everywhere. Mako quickly started trying to put the fire out with Firebending as he pulled his shirt over his mouth to keep from breathing in smoke. He lifted a patch of fire into the air, drawing it away from anything that would burn. It quickly fizzled out in the air and Mako turned his attention to another patch of flame. Soon other helpers, some cops and some just citizens wanting to help, arrived and helped Mako get rid of the fire.

When they had gotten rid of all the fire Mako could see in the stairs area, he went to another room and started putting out more flames. The next room had a woman huddling in a corner, watching the flames creep closer. Mako cleared a path with his Firebending and ran to the woman. He helped her up and led her out of the room. "Come on Ma'am, you need to get to safety." He said as calmly as he could manage. They reached the stairs. "OK ma'am, you need to go downstairs and get out of the building. Find a policeman and make sure he gets you somewhere safe."

"Wait!" The woman cried fearfully. "My husband is still here!"

Mako suddenly recognized her. It was Buttercup Raiko, President Raiko's wife. "I'll get him, Mrs. Raiko. You just get out of here and leave it to me."

She nodded, sobbing. "The guy who started all of this was firing lasers and setting everything on fire. He went into my husband's office and locked the door. Please go make sure he's alright!"

"I'll take care of it." Mako assured her. "Just get to safety."

She reluctantly went downstairs to relative safety. Mako searched the floor for Raiko's office. He found only one locked door, so had to assume that that was it. He burst down the door and leapt inside, battle ready.

There were no fires in here, not even a candle. The electricity had been shut off already to prevent any more fire hazards. Because of this, the room was incredibly dark. Mako barely made out a body crumpled on the floor. He rushed over to discover that it was indeed Raiko. Thankfully, the President was just unconscious.

Mako realized that someone was watching him. He looked up and saw that there was a dark figure sitting in the chair behind Raiko's desk. "Don't worry." Said the figure. "Raiko's alright, for now at least. Who might you be?"

"What does it matter to you?" Mako asked. There was something off about this guy, something that seemed very strange. Mako suddenly realized what it was. The guy had no eyes. Why didn't he have eyes?

"It matters to me because I like knowing who people are. Their name, some things about them. It puts my mind at ease." The figure said. "Call it a pet peeve of mine. So do you have a name?"

"Mako."

The figure whistled. "I know who you are. The Avatar's cop ex-boyfriend. I've heard a lot about you. I gotta say, it's nice to finally meet. Too bad you won't be leaving. See, you are also a friend of Varrick's, and I wanna cause that guy as much pain as I can." His arm came up and fired a blue blast of energy. It happened so fast that Mako was barely able to dodge out of the way in time. He dove in front of Raiko's desk to get out of this guy's line of fire. He glanced back and saw that the first attack had come within inches of hitting the unconscious president. He heard a whirring noise and scrambled to get away. His instincts were right. That noise was coming from the laser that the man was using. The desk was torn apart in a destructive blue light. If Mako hadn't gotten away in time he would probably look like the splintered remains of that desk.

Mako was in trouble. He knew he couldn't use his Firebending. He remembered what happened last time, and Lin's warning. He didn't have any other weapons, so he was forced to resort to his one usable fist. Not his favorite form of fighting, but it was something he could work with.

Mako charged the seated figure and threw a furious right hook. To his surprise the man didn't even try to dodge. Mako struck the man on the cheek- and felt his bones break. His hand exploded in a burst of pain and he cried out. Realizing he was too close for comfort, Mako leapt back and dove behind a bookcase for cover.

This guy's face was completely made of metal, he realized. Mako noticed that his opponent was wearing a mechasuit, albeit a different kind than he was used to. Now that he had seen him up close, he could see that his mechasuit looked more like a human than Varrick's mechasuits. It was thinner and shorter and not quite as bulky. Mako wondered what other differences there were to Varrick's mechas.

If Mako had been in trouble before, now he was desperate. With the knuckles in his right hand broken he no longer had a way to Firebend. He was practically at this guy's mercy. How was he going to get Raiko and himself out alive?

The guy in the mechasuit laughed. "I'm afraid punches don't work against me, Mako. You are going to need something much tougher. Aren't you a Firebender?"

Unfortunately for Mako, he had nothing tougher at the moment. He didn't have any Firebending at the moment. He didn't even have his left fist anymore. He had no conceivable way of winning. What could he do?

Suddenly the window exploded in a rain of glass. The mecha whirled around as Tenzin landed in the room. Before the enemy could fire his laser Tenzin sent a powerful wind his way that lifted the chair and mecha with it and slammed it into the back wall. Bumi and Kya landed in the room behind Tenzin, ready to support their brother.

"Mako!" Tenzin shouted. "What happened? Who is he?"

"I don't know." Mako answered. "All I know is that he has a mechasuit!"

The mecha was getting up. It didn't look even the slightest bit affected by the powerful impact with the wall. It grabbed the chair and lifted it into the air.

"Watch out!" Mako shouted as the mecha threw the chair at the siblings. They all dodged out of the way as the chair flew out of the window. Mako could only watch as the mechasuit charged at Tenzin and the others. If it got close they were unlikely to escape without injury or worse. But to his dismay it didn't attack, but instead followed the chair out the window.

All four benders rushed to the empty window and watched as the mechasuit landed heavily into the ground. The impact created a small crater several feet deep.

"I can't believe he would just jump like that." Kya said. "Did he not want to be captured?"

"I guess not." Tenzin replied. "Although this choice may have been a bit extreme. Why didn't he just use the door?"

"Wait!" Mako said, pointing down below. "Something's happening!"

A metal hand arose from the crater. Then another. They began lifting the rest of the mecha out. Somehow, incredibly, it was still working even after taking a fall like that.

"But that's impossible!" Mako exclaimed. "Varrick's mechasuits would have been torn to pieces!" This mechasuit, he noticed, still looked completely unharmed. As soon as it was out of its crater it ran away down the road at amazing pace. Mako already knew that Tenzin would have a tough time keeping up with Raiko's attacker in the city. Oogi wouldn't have been able to maneuver the streets like he

Tenzin apparently realized it as well. "We need to make sure Raiko is okay. We'll find that man later."

"I can't believe you let him escape!" Bumi complained. "You're embarrassing dad's legacy, Tenzin."

"Me?" Tenzin said. "Where were you in all that? Hiding behind Kya?"

While Bumi and Tenzin argued as they carried the President of Republic City to the window and laid him down in Oogi's saddle, Kya did what she could to heal Mako's hand. "So you punched him?" She asked with a smile. The water surrounding his hand lit up as it started to heal.

"I know, I know, it was stupid." Mako said. "But he looked pretty human before I could see what he really was. I mean, what he was wearing."

"Well why didn't you use your Firebending? Punching it seems more like something Bumi would do."

"About that, I kind of have to avoid Firebending for right now." He told her what had happened earlier. "That's why I need to know: is there anything you can do to make my left hand heal faster?"

"No, there isn't." Kya informed him. "I've already done all that I can, Mako. Even with my healing it could be years before you can Firebend with that hand again. I'm afraid Lin is right. You should avoid Firebending at all if you can help it, just in case. But this hand, I think, should be usable again in a couple of weeks. You're lucky it wasn't worse."

"Okay." Mako replied dejected. This meant it could be years before Lin let him return to his old job. How was he going to manage?

When they landed, a crowd was waiting for them, mainly paparazzi. Mako helped them bring President Raiko down into the arms of his wife. He was still unconscious, but she kissed him passionately anyway. "You're alive!" She exclaimed.

"MAKO?" Came the voice of his boss behind him. He turned slowly to face Chief Lin Beifong.

"What do you think you're doing here?" she stormed. "I told you to stay at the base. I specifically told you not to get involved in anything. How long has it been? An hour? Two? I expected more discipline form you, Mako."

Mako hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Chief Beifong. I just couldn't stand by and do nothing. Not when I can still help."

"I understand that." She said. "But right now you are more of a hindrance than a help." Those words stung him more than she could ever know. "In any event I gave you an order, and I expect you to follow it. I'm disappointed in you." She walked away, leaving Mako feeling the worst he had since he and Korra had broken up.

Juicy suddenly landed next to Oogi. Opal, Bolin, and Meelo got down, joining the crowd at the scene.

"Mako!" Bolin shouted, giving his brother a hug. He was completely oblivious to his brother's misery. "It's been like days since I've seen you! How've you been?"

"Where are Jinora and the others?" Opal asked, looking around.

"What do you mean?" Tenzin asked. "Aren't they still on their way?"

"Thy left before we did." Opal informed her teacher. "We thought they would be here already."

"So," Tenzin began slowly, "You're saying that you don't know where they are?" His voice rose in volume and panic with each word. "Jinora, Ikki, and Kai are missing? Gone?" He grabbed Opal by the shoulders, with tears in his eyes. "Where are my little girls? Where are they?"

He looked frantically around at the others, looking for some kind of an answer. Anything to tell him that it was okay, that his kids were alright. Opal was scared. His grip was strong, and she didn't know how to help him.

"No no no no no no no!" Tenzin whimpered. "They can't be gone. They just can't. Where are they?" The tears streamed more freely. He fell to his knees and howled, "WHERE ARE MY LITTLE GIRLS?"

**If you are reading this, Congradulations! You have reached the end of this chapter. Go ahead, take a moment to feel proud of yourself. A lot of people don't read anymore, but you do. That sets you apart, makes you special. And you are. The fact that you took the time of day to read this story makes you very special to me. You see, I value my readers. I love you guys. You make writing this worthwhile. Thank you. So if you liked my story go ahead and favorite, follow, and review! Go ahead, don't be shy. Also, and this is very important, don't forget to come to the dark side(we have cookies!)**

** -Darthlane**


	4. Chapter 4

**Welcome back to Revenge of the Red Lotus! I would like to thank you for reading this story this far. It means a lot to me. I hope you've liked it, because I've enjoyed writing it. But let's get on to the story. Quick recap: a mysterious assailant in a mecha suit attacked President Raiko's office building and escaped capture. Raiko is alright but unconscious and Mako suffered injuries rescuing the President. Both his arms are injured, so he can't Firebend right now (or can he?). At the same time, Juicy, with Jinora, Kai, and Ikki riding, have gone missing. Tenzin is torn apart by their mysterious disappearance. That's about all you need to know for this chapter. Go!**

** -Darthlane**

Chapter 4

**Jinora**

Jinora woke up shivering. It was cold. Why was it so cold? She opened her eyes and saw frozen trees covered with snow. The trees were familiar, but strange at the same time. Jinora was confused. Wasn't she in Republic City? She didn't remember going to either of the poles, where this kind of weather was normally found. She got up awkwardly, as her right arm felt like it had been chewed on by canyon crawlers, and looked around. It looked like one of the parks found in Republic City, but it was snowing. Jinora couldn't remember it ever snowing in Republic City. What was going on?

As she turned around she noticed a giant mound of white and grey fur. She realized that it was Pepper. The sky bison was sprawled in the snow, unconscious. "Pepper!" She cried.  
As she ran to her bison she suddenly remembered what had happened. Kai, Ikki, and herself had been riding on Pepper in the sky to something... What was it? The fire! President Raiko's office building had been on fire, and they had been on their way to help.

"It's okay, Pepper. Are you hurt?" She checked the massive animal and found that he was bleeding in the stomach. It looked pretty bad but Jinora knew it was actually a small injury for a bison. She was pretty sure he would be alright. But just to be sure she took some bandages out of the bag she kept in Pepper's saddle and patched up the injury.

But where were Ikki and Kai? Shouldn't they be around here too? They had been with her on the flight to Raiko's building, but they seemed to be missing now. Jinora looked around for her sister and her boyfriend as her memories continued to return.

**Flashback:** They had been flying, but then suddenly a large chunk of ice flew by Pepper. They had been under attack, and the attacks were way too close for comfort. Jinora had acted fast, pulling Pepper's reins to the side to swerve sharply. Another giant ball of ice flew into the air where Pepper had been before, but since Pepper had moved away this one missed wildly. Pepper's evasiveness was working for now.

Apparently the Waterbender realized that they needed to be faster to hit the bison. Smaller ice blocks shot into the air, sacrificing power for speed. They were still large enough to do serious damage to Pepper if they connected and were considerably easier to aim. The enemy's change of strategy worked. One the attacks struck Pepper in the belly. The bison let out a roar of pain and plummeted to the ground. He landed with a crash and all three passengers were thrown off.

Jinora remembered how terrified she was as she flew. She knew that she shouldn't have been, she was after all an Airbender, but she couldn't help it. Her fear had blocked any thoughts of using her bending. She had collided painfully into the ground.

Her vision was blacking out, but before she fell to the darkness she saw a figure approaching. It was a small girl, probably no older than twelve or thirteen years old. The girl had short red hair and wore a wide grin on her face. It was strange to see a small girl here, but that was nowhere near as strange as what was happening to everything around her. As she walked there was an air of coldness around her, as though she were ice in human form. Jinora's vision must have been playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn that the trees, shrubbery, and grass were freezing solid as the girl passed. **End**

Jinora shuddered at the memory. She had never felt so helpless. Not when Zaheer had poisoned her friend Korra, not when Amon had captured her family, not even when Unalaq had held her hostage in the Spirit World. She didn't ever want to feel that way again.

She looked around for Kai and Ikki. "Kai! Ikki!" She called out. "Where are you?" There was no answer, just the soft breathing of Pepper. Not even the little girl was there Jinora had seen was there. She started growing worried. "Kai? Ikki? Please answer! Please!" She hugged Pepper. At least she had him.

She realized that they would have been thrown off in the same direction she had been. They couldn't have been far from where she had woken up. She rushed over to the spot she had woken up at, desperate to find them. She looked all over bit couldn't find either her sister or her boyfriend. Just snow. Endless snow.

"No no no no no." She whimpered, tears starting to stream out. "You have to be here, you just have to. Ikki! Where are you? K-Kai!" She sat down in the snow and wept. They couldn't be gone. They just couldn't. She had almost let despair take over when she saw a small bit of brown sticking out of the white snow a few yards away. She gasped. Could it really be?

She ran to the small patch of brown and it was exactly what she had hoped it was: hair. Jinora cleared out the snow to reveal Kai's unconscious and bruised face. She was still crying, but it was tears of joy. She had found Kai. After she made sure he was still breathing Jinora laughed lightly, still crying. "Thank the spirits I found you." She kissed his forehead and dragged him out of the snow. But what she saw made her cry out in shock.

Kai's body from the chest down was completely frozen in a block of ice. He was trapped and probably freezing. Jinora now had little doubt that the girl she had seen was the Waterbender that had attacked them. But why had she frozen Kai like this? Had they fought? Why hadn't the girl finished them off when she beat him? Where was Ikki?

Jinora knew she had to break Kai out quickly or he would freeze to death. She looked around for something to break him open with. The only blunts object she could see were tree branches. They looked brittle and Jinora doubted they would do much against the thick ice.  
Jinora wondered briefly if her Airbending powers could work, but she doubted it. Air blasts and gust of wind weren't exactly brute force. They would do little to break Kai's icy prison. Jinora sighed inwardly. For the first time in her young life, Jinora wished she hadn't been born an Airbender. The irony that if she had been a bender of any of the other elements- fire, water, or earth- she could have saved Kai already. As an Airbender she was helpless. She silently cursed the universe and its messed up sense of humor.

What could she possibly do? She had no way of freeing Kai, and if he didn't get out soon he would die. She didn't even know how long he had been frozen like this. It could have been hours. Jinora had to hurry and find a way to free him or he might not make it. She had to find a way.

At the same time she needed to find Ikki. Her sister was still missing and that frightened Jinora. Jinora hoped her sister was somewhere close by, because she couldn't leave Kai alone to perish. But if Ikki wasn't nearby, if she had escaped or been captured or something, then Jinora couldn't find her sister. Horrible possibilities flashed through her mind, every bad ending she could think of. She didn't know what she would do if any of them came to pass.

What broke her heart was that to save either Kai or Ikki meant abandoning the other. If she tried searching for Ikki then she left Kai to freeze to death. If she tried to help Kai then she would have to give up looking for Ikki. A lose-lose situation.

How could she possibly choose? She couldn't leave her boyfriend to die. But she also couldn't abandon her sister. She could be freezing just like Kai and Jinora knew she couldn't just forget about her sister. Jinora wondered what her father would do in this situation. She knew he would probably take the safest, most logical decision. Which one was that?

Jinora knew what she had to do. She knew that if she left Kai, he would certainly die here. But she didn't know where Ikki was. She could very well be somewhere safe. Jinora had to make sure that the most immediate crisis was solved. She hated to do it, but she would have to choose Kai over Ikki.

But how would she save him? She had no way to break open the ice and get him to help. What she needed was someone else who could. She could try using her spirit projection to go contact her dad and the others. Kya was a Waterbender, and Mako was a Firebender. They should be able break Kai free, but Jinora had to hurry. She got into a meditative stance and took a deep breath. Then she let her mind go.

**Bolin**

Bolin couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy in his heart as he watched Tenzin weep. Bumi and Kya tried to comfort him, but it didn't appear to be working at all. And who could blame him? He just found out that his children were missing. That was impossible for anyone to deal with, even a powerful and wise Airbending Master like Tenzin.

"We have to tell him." Bolin said sadly to Opal. "I want to give him his space right now but we need him to see what we saw. They need to know what were up against."

"We can't." Opal answered. "You see him, right? We can't spring this on Tenzin right now. Let him be. You will only make things worse if you try to mess with him."

"Fine." Bolin said exasperatedly. "But if not Tenzin then who do we show? We have to show someone what's up there!"

"Show who what?" Mako asked, interjecting into the conversation. "What are you guys talking about?"

"We saw something on top of the building." Opal said. "Something big. We need Tenzin to see it, but he's kind of busy right now." She glanced sadly at her Airbending teacher.

"What about Chief Beifong?" Mako offered. "You could show her."

"Aunt Lin!" Opal exclaimed. "Of course!" The trio made their way through the bustling crowd to the chief of police.

Lin was currently directing police officers to places in need of help. "You! Go check on that woman over there. I want every injury accounted for and make sure to get some information out of her. I want as much info about this mecha guy as I can get. You two! Go back inside the building. We need to make sure everyone is out of there and that every last hazard is taken care of."

"Aunt Lin!" Opal called. "We need you!"

Lin turned to face them, an annoyed expression on her face. "Can't you see I'm busy? And what are you doing here Mako? I thought I made it pretty clear you are to get out of the field of duty."

Mako looked like he wanted to answer but held back his tongue. Arguing and angry comments wouldn't help him get his job back any faster. Instead Bolin answered, "We're really sorry to bother you Aunt L- I mean, ma'am, but there is something you really need to see."

"What is it this time?" Lin asked with a frown.

"It's uh, a flower?" Bolin said. Lin gave him a weird look and Opal slapped her forehead.

"I don't think my niece would like that too much, kid." Lin remarked.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Bolin said frantically, waving his arms. "I'm sorry, Aunt- I mean Chief Beifong!"

"Just shut up Bolin." Opal told her boyfriend. She turned her attention back to Lin."What he means is that there is something you need to see. It's on top of President Raiko's building."

"What is it?" Lin asked.

Bolin was about to answer but Opal cut him off before he could make things worse. "You wouldn't believe us if we told you. Trust me, you're going to want to see it."

Lin sighed. "Fine. Just make it quick. I still have a lot of work to do."

They made their way through the crowd of police officers, healers, media, and office workers. They reached Juicy and began climbing on. As Lin passed Juicy's face the oft-sickly bison sneezed. A wave of snot crashed over Lin who gave out a scream. "You overgrown cow!" She shouted. "You couldn't have waited two seconds to do that?" The three young adults had to hold Lin back before she tried to use her Metalbending on Juicy.

Opal used her Airbending to clean off her aunt and apologized for Juicy. "He didn't mean anything by it. He just can't help it sometimes."

"I'm sitting in the back." Lin grumbled as she got rid of the last of Juicy's snot. "I want to be as far away from that leaky head of his as I can."

With all of them seated and ready to go, Juicy took off. Bolin took one last look back at Tenzin. The man was still weeping for his lost daughters. Tenzin, who was always wise and calm in the face of the darkest times, had finally been broken. Not even the beating Zaheer and the rest of the Red Lotus had dealt to him had done this much damage. At that moment Bolin would have traded anything just to get Jinora, Ikki, and Kai back. Anything.

**Tenzin**

How could this have happened? That question kept repeating like never ending torture in his mind. With it was images, moments that had never happened but his mind conjured all too easy. His girls screaming in fear. Horribly injured. Pain showing all too well in their eyes. Disfigured beyond all recognition. And worst of all, lifeless. That was the one image that kept coming back no matter how hard he tried to push it away. He couldn't make it stop, would do anything to make it stop. How could this have happened?

All the while he could hear voices in the background. Kya, telling him everything would be alright. A lie. Bumi, saying that Jinora, Ikki, and Kai were all perfectly okay, just sidetracked. Another lie. Even Meelo, boldly saying that nothing would stop him from ripping Republic City apart until he found his sisters. Just another lie like the others.

Tenzin just sat on the cold pavement, sobbing into his knees. He couldn't pay the real world any attention. Not when he couldn't escape from the nightmare inside his mind. He appreciated what Bumi, Kya and his son Meelo were trying to do, but he wasn't ready. For now at least, he was lost to them.

Because of this, Tenzin didn't notice the cries of shock from the crowd. He didn't notice the excited, awed whispers and the path they made for the new arrival. He didn't even notice when Bumi cried out the name of the person who approached Tenzin. But he did notice when that person called softly to him, "Dad?"

His eyes flew open and he was on his feet with the speed that only a Master Airbender could attain. There she was, right in front of him. His daughter. Jinora. Glowing blue and disembodied like the spirits, but it was her. Jinora.

"Jinora." he croaked. "You're alive." He wanted so bad to hug her, to hold her close and never let go. To protect her for all eternity. But she was just a projection. She was still out of reach.

"Yes, Dad." She said with a quiver in her voice. "But I need you. If we don't get to Kai quick, he could die." She turned to Kya. "Kai needs you in particular. Only you can save him."

There was a new steel in Tenzin's mind. With an internal roar, he ripped away all the dark thoughts that had plagued his mind. He had a mission now. To save Ikki and Kai and to never let them be endangered ever again. "Let's go save them." He ordered. "Lead the way."

**Lin**

Opal steered Juicy to higher and higher altitudes so that they could see the roof of the office building. Lin gripped the hard leather of the saddle nervously as they got higher. She didn't like heights all that much. It was okay if she was in an airship or atop a tall building. But this was ridiculous. How was she supposed to keep from falling of things got crazy? If the bison decided for some reason to flip over there was nothing to keep all of them from plummeting to their deaths. That was all good and well for the Airbenders, but Lin and the rest of the world could not fly. In her opinion every time she rode a sky bison she risked her very life.

They finally got higher than President Raiko's office. Opal made Juicy cruise in a big circle so they could get a good view of whatever the stupid thing was her niece wanted to show her.

What they saw surprised Lin to her very core.

It was a giant symbol that was made entity of flames. How someone had made this symbol in flames Lin had no idea. Maybe it was the mecha wearing terrorist that Lin had hears about. He was supposed to have a laser cannon or something. It was likely that this was his work.

But what was far more interesting was the symbol itself. It covered the whole roof, and it was, as Bolin had told her, a flower. Lin remembered seeing it for her entire life. She especially remembered seeing it when a group of old people had dropped by to visit her mother while Lin was still very young. They had all worn that flower on their clothes and had all kept a small token with the flower painted on with them at all times. She even remembered one of the old men, the youngest of the group that carried a sword and a dry sense of humor, giving her one of the tokens and telling her not to lose it. If she remembered correctly, it was still hidden in her apartment at the bottom of her sock drawer.

It was the symbol of the White Lotus. But it seemed off. Different. It was definitely the right symbol, but it now seemed more sinister, as though it were a dark parody of the original. In the light of the fire it almost seemed red.

"The Red Lotus." Lin said in shock. "It can't be. We captured Zaheer, and the others are dead. It can't be them." She remembered very clearly the enemies she had fought three years ago. The flying Airbender, the armless Waterbender, the lava-wielding Earthbender, and the scariest of the bunch, the Firebender that the same Combustion ability that her mother Toph had told her about as a scary story many years before. They were gone. It couldn't be them. Could it?

"I hope you're right." Opal said, the flames reflecting off of her bright green eyes. The symbol of the Red Lotus burned brightly in the dark night, possibly a signal for darker times ahead. Republic City no longer seemed like a city recovering from a disaster to Lin. It now seemed like a broken host that a disease was slowly creeping into, leeching out whatever life it could from it before the host was dead. Lin could only hope that she was wrong about this. She would have never been happier to been wrong.

**Boom! Enter Red Lotus! They have sent their message, and now our heroes know that hard times lie ahead. What will they do next? Can Tenzin and the others save Kai? Where is Ikki? Find out in the next chapter! But while you're waiting, go ahead and favorite, follow, and review! Also be sure to check out my other story, Dragon of the West. It's about Iroh before Avatar: The Last Airbender, and I think you guys would like it. And of course, don't forget to turn to the dark side (we have cookies!)**

** -****Darthlane**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again! As I'm sure you have already figured out, this is Chapter 5 of Revenge of the Red Lotus. Just to recap, we left last chapter with Kai frozen and slowly dying from hypothermia, Lin and the others have seen the giant flaming Red Lotus symbol, and Ikki is still missing. I hope you enjoy this chapter, I enjoyed writing it.**

Chapter 5

**Lin**

Juicy landed with a plop onto the street. Lin and the others got off of the bison, Lin herself rather shakily. She was never going to get used to those smelly beasts. She hastily bid the kids she had been riding with goodbye. It was short and not very emotional, but Lin had never been good at that kind of thing. She actually liked Mako, Bolin, and Opal more than they would think, but she wasn't the type to tell them that. Not in a thousand years.

As she walked away several reporters and other media quickly surrounded Lin and the others, asking about what she was planning to do about the attack. She ignored them and pushed her way through to her entourage of policemen waiting for her. "Men, get ahold of General Iroh. Tell him I need to talk to him immediately. Have him call the station. That's where I'll be. I can trust you all to finish handling things here, right?"

"Yes ma'am!" One of them stammered. They burst into action trying to find a phone. Lin walked to her open-topped Satomobile that she had received from the girl Asami Sato a few years back. She never liked the damn machine, but she had been using it more and more as time became of the essence. She got in and started driving back to the station. She had a lot to plan for if she wanted to stop the Red Lotus before they could cause any damage.

She would need to get Iroh and his troops back quickly. They had left to deal with any resisting troops in the Earth King- no the Earth Empire. No, actually it would be the Earth Republic, wouldn't it? Lin would have to ask someone later what their official name would be. But anyway, she needed Iroh if she was going to stop Red Lotus. If they were anything like last time she would need as many men on her side as she could get.

She should also see about getting Korra to return soon. It could be a desperate war, right after the last war they had just had, if the Avatar wasn't here. Lin knew she could be vital to stopping this new Red Lotus.

Before Lin was gone she heard an all-too familiar voice shout her name. Really? Now of all times? She sighed as she pulled her car to a stop. She didn't have time to deal with this. Not when the Red Lotus could be back.

She got out and waited for President Raiko and his army of guards to catch up. They looked out of breath from trying to chase down her Satomobile. She hid the smile that threatened to emerge on her face. The president looked ridiculous trying to run in that suit of his.

"Chief Beifong." He said, winded, "I have orders for you."

"Good to see you too, Mr. President." She answered sarcastically. "Glad to see you awake and running around."

Raiko apparently noticed the sarcasm because he glared and said, "Now is not the time, Beifong. I was just attacked and something has to be done about it. Now, I have already determined who the culprit is and I want you to bring him in. I order you to go arrest Varrick at once."

"Varrick?" Lin asked, surprised. "What does Varrick have to do with this?"

"It was obviously him!" Raiko said. "He's already attempted to kidnap me once before and almost got away with it if it hadn't been for the loyal actions of Bolin. He also supported Kuvira while she was taking over the Earth Kingdom. He even created the weapon that caused all of the destruction to our beautiful city. Not to mention the most incriminating piece of evidence. It was a mechasuit, obviously created by him, that attacked me today. He is a liar, a thief, a traitor, and an enemy of Republic City. Arrest him."

"But it wasn't him!" She protested. "It was the Red Lotus!"

"Impossible." Raiko dismissed her words with a wave. "Zaheer is imprisoned and the rest are dead. You were there yourself when they were defeated. It has to be Varrick again."

"But I saw their symbol myself. It's on your roof, made of fire. It's definitely their symbol; I've seen it all my life."

"That's impossible. The Red Lotus have already been defeated. You are just being paranoid, Lin."

"Do I have to repeat myself Chief Beifong?" Raiko almost shouted. "Go arrest the man responsible and quit jumping at shadows. Now."

"Yes, sir." Lin gritted through her teeth. She got back in her car and drove away as quickly as she could, leaving skid marks on the pavement. She was angry at Raiko, and not for the first time by far. How could the man have been given responsibility over the whole city when he was so damn stupid sometimes? When she was sure she was out of earshot she shouted, "Damn you, Raiko!" She knew that man was going to be the ruin of them someday.

She arrived all too soon at the Sato Mansion. Asami Sato had kindly let Varrick and Zhu Li stay at her home while she would be gone on vacation with Korra. While they stayed Asami and Varrick's factories were all going under repairs from the blows they took from Kuvira's Colossus. Soon Sato Enterprises and Varrick Global Industries would be running as efficiently as they had before.

Lin knocked apprehensively on the door. She really didn't want to do this. It wasn't justice when the innocent were arrested in favor of the guilty.

The door was quickly answered by Zhu Li, who was wearing a beautiful green dress that Lin couldn't imagine her wearing when she was just Varrick's assistant. Zhu Li's face lit up when she saw Lin. "Ms. Beifong! It's good to see you! Come on in!" She grabbed Lin's hand and led her into the living room with a surprisingly strong grip. Varrick was lounging on one of the couches, fiddling with some little piece of junk. Probably some new invention of some sort... "We have a guest, honey." Zhu Li said.

"Sure enough we do." Varrick said, a twinkle in his eye. He set down his toy and smiled. "What brings you by, Chief? I heard about that business downtown. Is everyone still doing well? Is that the reason you dropped in?"

The corner of Lin's mouth twitched. "No, not at all. I'm here to arrest you."

She expected some great outburst, but all Varrick did was turn to Zhu Li and say, "See? I told you we should have gone on a honeymoon. But you just wouldn't listen. Just because were married now doesn't mean you can ignore everything I say."

"No, I told you we should take a honeymoon. You're confusing yourself again, honey." Zhu Li argued. "I said we should go but you said we should stay here."

"Well we should!" Varrick said indignantly. "We would be doing the same things anywhere else that we do here, and it's cheaper just to stay put. Of course we stayed." He puffed out his chest, proud of his business sense.

"I never actually agreed to stay if you will remember." Zhu Li said. "You just refused to go anywhere and there was no point in leaving if you weren't going with me."

"Darn tootin' there wasn't! You can't go anywhere without me and I sure can't go anywhere without you! That's how we know this is going to work." Varrick said with a wink. He stood up and held out his wrists to Lin. "Well let's get this over with."

"Wha- but you didn't even ask why I'm arresting you." Lin exclaimed. "Don't you want to know?"

Varrick shrugged. "Doesn't really matter since I didn't do it. I'll be out of prison soon enough." After Lin didn't do anything he just said irritably, "Just do the thing already!"

With a sigh, Lin cuffed a man she knew was innocent. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you."

Varrick just laughed as he was lead out of the house. "Sure it will! Geez, Bolin never told me how funny you are, Chief. Come on, Zhu Li!"

"Coming!" Came a voice behind Lin.

"Hey, Chief." Varrick said as he was led to her Satomobile. "Is that cell I had still around? Kuvira didn't destroy it, did she? Because my favorite chair, my absolute favorite one, was in there. It's literally irreplaceable. I don't know what I would do without it."

Lin groaned as she shoved the inventor into the car. This was going to be a long car ride.

**Tenzin**

"How much farther is it, Jinora?" Tenzin shouted over the wind as Oogi soared the sky over Republic City. Jinora, Bumi, Kya, and Meelo were all peering out in all directions, looking for the slightest sign of snow.

Jinora's spiritual projection looked slightly confused. "We should have reached it already. It wasn't quite this far out. And this is definitely the direction I took. Where is it?"

Growing desperate, Tenzin turned Oogi back. He hoped they had just passed it up, maybe. They searched harder for the frozen area Jinora had described. Soon enough they spotted a grove of trees in the park that were covered in ice and snow. It was very out of place in the normal-looking park surrounding it. Well, normal besides the bright spirits that roamed around. There had been even more since Kuvira's weapon had created another spirit portal.

"Wasn't that direction you were supposed to be looking?" Tenzin said angrily to Meelo. He was in disbelief that his son could have missed the entire grove of frozen trees. "Were you not even looking?"

Realizing he was on slippery ground with his father, Meelo tried to explain. "Sorry, I just wasn't paying attention the whole-"

"Not paying attention?" Tenzin shouted. "Why in the world would you not be paying attention? We are looking for your sister! Do you not even care?"

It took a few moments of huffing for Tenzin to realize how silent it was. Silent and tense. He looked around to see everyone else's faces frozen in shock and horror. No one, not even Kya and Bumi, had ever seen him yell like that. It was something foreign, something they had never believed Tenzin was capable of doing.

Tenzin looked back at Meelo. His son looked hurt and confused, and there was something else. His tear filled eyes have held another emotion. Tenzin realized what it was: betrayal. In Meelo's eyes Tenzin had betrayed his trust and turned into something unfamiliar in that moment.

"Oh, Meelo." Tenzin said softly, shocked by his own overreaction. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said that. That was completely uncalled for." He tried to put a hand on his son's shoulder, but Meelo pulled away. He scooted as far away as the crowded saddle allowed.  
They landed and Meelo was off of Oogi faster than Tenzin knew his son was capable of. "Son, wait! I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!" He called, but Meelo was gone.

"Ah! What have I done? I've ruined everything!" He held his head in his hands, trying to think of some way to fix what he had done. He should never have yelled, he knew that for sure. Yelling almost never helped and was never, ever called for. That was what Tenzin had always believed, something his father had been sure to ingrain in him. Why had he cracked on his beliefs now?

"Tenzin, it's okay." Kya said, stopping her brother from chasing after Meelo. She waved for Bumi and Jinora to go ahead and go. "Give him time. He knows you didn't mean it. You're just dealing with a whole lot of stress right now."

"Everything just seems to be falling apart around me." Tenzin whispered. "First I lost Jinora and Ikki, and now Meelo is angry with me. What did I do wrong? Why is this happening?"

"Sometimes bad things happen to good people. It's a part of life. But you can't let yourself be broken by it. You have to keep trying to fix it. If you don't, you've truly given up."

"Why bother?" Tenzin said grumpily. "No matter how hard I try I won't stop all the bad people in the world."

Kya groaned. "Tenzin? Do you hear yourself right now? You don't sound like you. You sound more like Lord Zuko, actually."

Tenzin's eyebrows went up. "Really? That dour?" A slight smile crept at the corner of his mouth.

Kya smiled lightly. "Not quite, but you're getting there. So come on and get up. Meelo knows you didn't mean it and he'll get over it. Just give him a little bit of time. For now just worry about finding Ikki and Kai."

They both got off of Oogi and followed after the others. Oogi had landed in the grass just outside of the snow and ice. The snowy area made a very large circle, about half the size of Air Temple Island.

"What kind of Waterbender could have created this?" Tenzin asked ad he trudged through the snow. "This is incredible! How could they have even gotten this much water here?"

"It's beyond my powers." Kya admitted. "I didn't think this kind of Waterbending was possible. I doubt even Amon could have done this." She bent down and picked up some of the snow, feeling it in her hands.

"What about Mom?" Tenzin asked. He was worried about just how powerful their mysterious enemy could possibly be. If they were more powerful than even his mother Katara it would be incredibly difficult to pull out a victory.

"Maybe in her prime. I just don't know."

They emerged into a clearing where everyone else was already waiting. Pepper was there, now awake. Bumi and Meelo were trying to shake the icicles out of his fur, but there were too many to possibly get out for just two people. It didn't help that most were too far frozen to break off without causing Pepper pain. Jinora had returned to her body and was hovering over Kai in worry. It took Tenzin a moment to realize Kai was entombed by a solid case of ice. Kai was turning a more bluish tint as hypothermia was steadily taking over.

Jinora called out, "Over here! Aunt Kya, he needs you!" Kya and Tenzin ran over.

"How long has he been like this?" Tenzin asked as Kya ran her hands over the ice.

"At least since before I woke up. Please, save him." She pleaded.

"It's okay, Jinora, everything is going to be alright." Tenzin said. "I can't remember there ever being anyone that Kya couldn't find a way to save."

Kya took a deep breath and motioned with her hands in a ripping action at the ice. But nothing happened. She tried again but was met with failure again.

"Uh, was it supposed to do that?" Bumi asked as he and Meelo approached.

"No." Kya said, shocked. "It was supposed to split open. I think we are dealing with something more powerful than we've ever seen before."

"Wait. This is ice." Tenzin said. "You're a Waterbender. Why can't you bend it?" He had always thought every Waterbender could bend ice. Kya was one of the most powerful Waterbenders in the world so Tenzin would have thought she would have no trouble with something like this.

"That's what I'm wondering." Kya answered. "I should be able to bend this. Just because someone else already used Waterbending on this ice, no matter how powerful they were, shouldn't make it any harder for me to bend. It's still just ice. That's why this is scary for me. I don't know why I can't bend it. I don't know what's causing this."

She tried again, pushing her palm down in a crushing motion. A small crack formed in the ice.

Kya groaned. "This isn't fast enough!"

"Isn't it still ice?" Jinora asked. "Why is it so resistant to bending?"

"I don't know." Kya said, frustrated. "Imagine if there was air that wouldn't let you bend it. Or for Mako and Bolin, some rock or some fire that wouldn't obey. Do you see how frustrating this is for me? Especially because I can't even begin to guess how it's accomplished, or how to stop it and make this ice normal again."

"Hey, at least you know its breakable." Bumi said. "You just gotta keep chipping away at it and it'll break eventually."

"We don't have that option." Kya remarked. "I don't know how long Kai has, but he will be dead long before I can manage to break through. We have to find another way."

"I don't think there is anything that could break the ice any faster than Waterbending." Tenzin said.

Bumi laughed. "What are you guys talking about? We have the perfect way to break through. Like I would always say back in the army, when bending fails you try using good old brute force. You would be surprised how effective it can be."

Tenzin's eyebrows furrowed. "What are you talking about, Bumi?"

Bumi pointed back over at Pepper. "I have a hunch that that big lug could crack it open. Heck, I would be surprised if he couldn't. Just have him walk on that ice and see what happens."

"What if it kills him?" Tenzin asked. "It could very easily just crush the ice and Kai with it."

"Kya couldn't get through." Bumi pointed out. "She barely marked it. I don't think putting a bison on it will kill the boy."

Tenzin looked to Kya for an answer. She shrugged. "I don't think we have a choice. In the end though, I think it's Jinora's call."

She turned to the girl. "Are you alright with trying Uncle Bumi's idea?"

Jinora just nodded. She waved over her sky bison, who lumbered over obediently. "Let's do this, Pepper." She said softly. "Let's do it for Kai."

She climbed onto Pepper then ordered him to walk forward. Everyone backed up as Pepper started walking. He was initially reluctant to walk onto the block of ice encasing Kai, but stepped onto it when Jinora urged him forward.

To everyone's relief the ice wasn't crushed by the bison. What would be the point of breaking Kai free if he were crushed in the process?

After Pepper had gotten off, Bumi peered closely at the ice. "It didn't even leave a scratch! It left less of a mark than Kya did, somehow."

"Now what do we do?" Tenzin exclaimed.

"Easy." Bumi answered. "Let's have Pepper jump on him now!"

Everyone exploded into protest. "That's crazy! What are you thinking?"

"Hey hey hey!" Bumi said, throwing up his hands. "Think about it for a second. Walking on it did practically nothing. If it can withstand that kind of weight, I don't think Pepper will be able to kill Kai even if he is jumping on him."

"But still," Tenzin said," what if it crushes him? You could kill him!"

"What if it doesn't crush him?" Bumi challenged. "Tenzin, you're forgetting that if we don't get him out soon he's dead anyway and it's all for moot."

"Fine. Do it." Tenzin turned around. "But don't expect me to watch."

It was harder to get Pepper to jump on Kai, but Jinora was able to get him to do it after a minute of pleading. To everyone's relief the impact created a bunch of cracks in the ice. It was a huge improvement on the progress they had already started, but there was still a long way to go.

"This still won't be fast enough." Kya said. "Got any more ideas, Bumi?"

"Yeah, I got one more. But Tenzin is going to hate it. I think we need Pepper to fly up in the air and land on it."

"What?" Tenzin almost screamed. "That is utterly ridiculous!"

"But necessary." Kya cut in before an argument could break out. She nodded at Jinora. "Do it."

At Jinora's command Pepper soared above the trees and then came back down and landed on the Kaicicle. Everyone winced as Pepper landed. There was a large crunch as ice was smashed.

Everyone was still for a moment as Pepper got off of Kai. Tenzin was scared Pepper might have done too good of a job breaking Kai's ice open. Judging from everyone else's expression, they shared his fear. Everyone let out a collective fear when Kai was revealed to be in one unsquashed piece. There was still ice, but it was mostly in fragments and little was left to still break away.

"Thank Raava." Tenzin muttered under his breath. Louder he said, "Is that an adequate amount of unfrozen boy to work with, Kya?"

Kya looked the young Airbender over. "I should be able to save him if we hurry him back to somewhere I can work from."

"Jinora, you should go with Aunt Kya and get Kai back to the city." Tenzin said. "You have been out here freezing for hours and you should go get warm."

"But I want to help-" Jinora put in before Tenzin cut her off.

"No, Jinora. I need to be sure that you are safe, and I'm sure you will need to be sure Kai is safe. Please, just go. I'll handle everything here, and I will feel a lot better knowing you are safe."

"Fine." Jinora said, hanging her head. "Just make sure you bring back Ikki."

"I promise you Jinora," Tenzin said, his voice cracking, "I will bring back Ikki at all costs."

**Ikki**

Ikki woke up in complete darkness. "What?" She shouted. "Where am I?" She remembered flying with Jinora and Kai above Republic City, then being attacked by some ice, but not anything else. She must have been knocked out. So where was she now?  
She realized that she was sitting against metal. Not that it helped seeing as she was an Airbender.

"Jinora?" Ikki called into the darkness "Kai? Are you guys there? Feeling kind of lonely, guys? Seriously, can you hear me?"

She tried to stand but banged her head on a metal ceiling. "Wow this is short." She said to herself. "I usually can't hit my head on anything." All of a sudden she felt very lonely. She just wanted to hear someone speak. Even when her siblings annoyed her she didn't like being alone. She would be able to handle being a strange place if there was at least someone there to experience it with.

She crawled around but soon discovered that she was just in what felt like a small box, about the size of the training ring back at home. It was completely metal from what she could tell, and completely bare. Just an empty box with her inside.

Why was she here? Had she been captured? If so, who had captured her?  
She didn't know for sure, but she had a feeling that she was still in Republic City. She just had to hope. Beyond that, she was clueless.

"Jinora?" She called out, a bit more anxious now. "Kai? Dad? Anyone? Please." She hugged her knees. Hopefully it would be over soon.

Unknown to Ikki, her captor, Setta the teenage Master Waterbender and member of the Red Lotus, was just outside of Ikki's metal cage listening. Setta was finding incredible pleasure just from hearing her captive become more scared and desperate for human contact. "Yes." She breathed heavily. "Realize just how much trouble you're in. Then you can start crying." She licked her lips. "Cry for me. I'm sure you will be even cuter when you cry. Just feed me your fear. Please. I need it. I want it so bad. Cry for mama." She heard a sob from the other side of the metal. Yes! That was what she had been craving so much. It had been far too long before she had kept a pet. She loved having cute pets. And this one was very cute indeed. Setta would have a lot of fun with this young Airbending girl. She grinned at the thought. A LOT of fun. The sobs continued, heard only by a sadistic, evil girl.

**And that's that. Varrick is being imprisoned for something he didn't do, Lin is trying to bring in the cavalry but Raiko won't listen, Tenzin did something he can't take back, and Bumi's plan (with Pepper leading the way) broke Kai free. What will happen to them next? Check in next time to find out! But in the meantime be sure to follow, favorite, and review. Also, be sure to check out my friend Solo Gamer. He has a Percy Jackson story and a Teen Titans story that I am sure you guys would love. And remember, don't forget to turn to the dark side (we have cookies!)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello again, guys! Sorry it's been so long since I updated, I've just been unusually busy with schoolwork and such. Plus I'm very lazy. I apologize. But good news: I prepared a whopper for you guys this chapter. Some shit is going to go down at the end that's going to blow your minds(and likely make me some new enemies). But you aren't really living life if no one hates you, I heard once. Besides, I happen to eat flames. They're pretty good. But of course I would rather you guys appreciate what is going to happen, so I very much hope you like this chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 6

**Mako**

"Sure you don't want to play, kid?" Varrick asked Mako. He held his hand of cards so that his opponents, Zhu Li and two other prisoners in the cell, couldn't see what he possessed.

"Nah, not this time." Mako said as he leaned against the metal bars. "I haven't played cards in a long time. Idoubt I know how to play that game."

"Well of course you don't!" Varrick said. "I just made the rules to this one up. I call it: Spirit Vines! Just you wait, it'll catch all of Republic City by storm soon enough." He turned to one of the other prisoners. "Your turn to be the Crazy Dictator."

"Isn't just the same thing that the dealer does in other games?" The prisoner complained. "Why not just call it the dealer?"

"Because Crazy Dictator sounds more appropriate. Also, it's my game so I decide the rules. Now hurry up and go, you Crazy Dictator! We don't have all day!" Varrick grabbed his chin. "Although now that I think about it, maybe we do. You're a lifer, right? That should give us more than enough time to play cards."

Zhu Li slapped her forehead. "Just go before he says anything else, Dauro."

Dauro shrugged and glanced around at the other players. "Everyone ready? OK, Do. The. Thing!"

All four players layed down two cards. Before even looking at how his cards fared against the others Varrick shouted, "I win! Haha! I am so good at this game!"

"No!" Dauro said pointing a finger at Varrick. "You have won all five rounds of this! No one is that lucky at any card game. You're cheating, Varrick!"

"Am not!" Varrick argued. "You guys just aren't very good."

"We would be better if we knew the actual rules." The other prisoner, Niotu, said. "You keep changing everything." He pointed at Zhu Li's cards. "Isn't that what you had a couple or rounds ago? The one you said was unbeatable? What'd you call it... The Blue Spirit's Gambit? She should have won this round."

Varrick dismissed the notion with a wave of his hand. "You're confused. That is an, um, Earth Rumble. It's kind of middle-of-the-pack good so I still beat her."

"No, that's definitely what you had before." Niotu said. "You lose."

"Not if I choose to use another spirit vine. As we all know, that allows me to trade any card of my choosing with another player. I'll be taking that, honey." He switched one of his cards with one of Zhu Li's. "There. See? I won."

"No way." Dauro said, shaking his head. "You said we could only use one of those."

"Alright. You caught me. I can't you two spirit vines back to back. Instead, I will use a spirit portal and draw a third card!" He swept a third card among his other two. "See? I win. Man, am I good at this!"

"Wha- No!" Niotu cried out. "You can't just make up stuff like that, Varrick! Quit cheating. You lost, just face it."

Varrick glanced around, trying to think of something to rebuttal with. "Uh, no I didn't. I declare Harmonic Convergence!" He suddenly swept his arms violently through the playing space. The cards fluttered all over the cell, leaving the game all but destroyed.

Varrick crossed his arms, a smug expression on his face. "Now that round didn't count. We have to start over." He nodded to Dauro. "Clean them up, Crazy Dictator."

"No!" Dauro said angrily. "I am not playing that stupid game ever again. You pick them up, you-"

He was cut off when the front door of the police station burst open. Mako immediately got into a fighting stance. He remembered that mecha guy saying he hated Varrick, so Mako wouldn't be surprised if that guy attacked the police station.

Thankfully it was just Kya and Jinora. Mako realized they were carrying someone and looked closer. He immediately recognized Kai, the teenage Airbender that they had found in the Earth Kingdom three years ago. The boy was unconscious and unnaturally pale.

"Whoa! What's going on!" Mako said as he ran over to get them a chair to place Kai in. "What happened to him?"

The girls dropped him into the chair. "He was freezing." Kya said urgently. "He has hypothermia. Get some blankets or something to warm him up." When Mako didn't move at first she ordered, "Now!" And he jumped into motion.

He frantically looked around a blanket, before settling on a jacket someone had left on a desk. He placed the jacket over Kai and looked to Kya for further instructions.

She had produced some water from her personal supply and it floated through the air and covered both of her hands. Mako had been injured enough to know that every healer used this method to work on their patients. It allowed them to use their hands with precision and feel the injuries better because of their Waterbending.

Kya gently moved her hands over Kai's forehead. "Hey Mako, try to find some more stuff to warm him up. He is way too cold right now." She moved her hands over his chest and felt his beating heart. "Are you sure you can't Firebend, Mako? That would really come in handy right about now."

"I'm sorry." Mako called from across the room as he grabbed every item that could possibly help. "If you can't fix my hand then I can't bend. It's as simple as that."

Jinora glared at Mako. "You aren't even going to try? What's wrong with you? He could die!"

It was Mako's turn to get angry. "You think I don't want to save him? Believe me, if I thought I could help I would be doing more than grabbing spare hats. I tried to Firebend today with the hand I injured destroying Kuvira's Collosuss and what came out was a bolt of lightning. It blew a big hole part of the street. I didn't try to make it and I couldn't stop it. Im far too dangerous to try Bending around anyone right now. Do you really want me to point that at Kai?"

Jinora faltered. She didn't know how to answer that.

"Unless I'm completely sure I won't hurt him I'm not using any bending." Mako said sternly. He dropped the pile of small items onto Kai. It included a shirt, a couple of hats, a few rags, and a thin jacket. It wasn't much, but it had to be slightly warmer than without.

"I don't suppose either of you can Firebend?" Kya asked the other two prisoners. They both shook their heads. "Is there anyone else we can get that might be able to help, Mako?"

"Not that I know of." Mako answered, thinking. "There are only a couple of other guys on the force who can and I don't know how to get ahold of them. Besides them, there might be a couple of guys I know in the city, but again, I'm not sure how to get ahold of them."

"There has to be something!" Jinora said anxiously. She glanced a Kai in fear. Mako felt bad for her. She must be out of her mind in worry. He knew they were very close to each other.

If Mako hadn't been thinking of her at the moment he wouldn't have noticed Jinora wobble and fall. He dove and caught her, putting a huge strain on his injured hands. He grimaced as he set her down softly.

"Jinora! What the hell just happened?" He realized her eyes were closed and shook her. She jolted awake. "What? What happened?"

"I think you fell asleep, Jinora. Are you okay?"

"I was so preoccupied with Kai that it slipped my mind that you were out there too." Kya said apologetically. "You need rest Jinora. You probably need to warm up, too. It was freezing out there."

"No!" Jinora pleaded. "I feel completely fine-"

"Don't lie to me, Jinora." Kya ordered sternly. "I know Tenzin didn't raise you like that. Just listen to me. You need rest, honey. You can't help Kai, Ikki, or anyone else in the condition you're in."

Jinora's lip quivered. She let out a small sob. "Promise me you'll wake me up as soon as he's better, okay?"

Kya nodded. "Of course. As soon as anything happens we will let you know immediately. But for now just get some sleep, please."

Jinora nodded and Mako picked her up and led her to one of the softest chairs in the station. She fell asleep within a minute. Mako figured she had probably used some sort of meditation technique to help.

"Damn." Kya said, focused on Kai's health. "He still isn't near warm enough."

"Is there anything you can do?" Mako asked. "You are a healer."

Kya lowered her head. "His injuries are either healed or healing nicely. It's not the scrapes of battle that are taking their toll on the boy. He spent way too long in that block of ice and it might be too much cold for his body to take. It's not something that I can help with. You might have been able to, but with your, well, disability he is on his own."

"I wouldn't disregard Mako quite so easily." Varrick said from the cell. "I think he can still help the boy yet."

"What do you mean?" Kya asked warily as she and Mako approached the cell.

"I have an idea." The inventor said excitedly. He stood up and grabbed the bars, leaning in close. "Okay, so Mako's problem is that he can't Firebend because he can't use his arms right?"

Mako nodded. "That's right. Go on."

"Well, throughout my traveling I've seen my fair share of Bending up close. One of the things I've noticed is that it uses a lot of martial arts and stuff like that. Because of that the Benders don't always use their hands to do the bending. They also sometimes use their feet, their body, and even in a couple of cases their head." His eyes narrowed in on Mako. His voice dropped, making him sound more serious all of a sudden. "I know your brother would be crazy enough to try what I'm about to propose, but I don't know jiddly squat about you. Tell me kid: do you think you can heat that kid up with Firebending just using your feet?"

Everyone was still for a moment. Mako considered it. Bending with his feet was something he had done before. Every Bender has used a kick at some point or another. But what Varrick was proposing wasn't a kick. It was holding fire using only his feet. It was difficult using hands, and that was considering that it wasn't hard to picture your hands holding something. But feet were bound to be a great deal tougher. He pondered over whether he thought he could do it. Then he smiled. "It's definitely worth a try."

"There's my man!" Varrick said proudly. "I knew you were made of the same stuff as Bolin!"

"Are you sure you can really do this?" Kya asked him quietly. "It takes an expert Bender to display complete control using only their legs."

"Honestly, I don't know." Mako answered as they walked over to the unconscious, freezing boy. "This is very unlikely to work and I don't know if I can pull it off anyway. But it might give Kai a better chance than he had before. That's all we can really ask for."

Kya nodded slowly. "As a healer, I would never approve of this. It's risky and honestly pretty stupid. It would be a miracle if it worked, and I don't like counting on miracles." She paused. Then she said fiercely, "But my niece loves this boy. She really does. That makes him family in my eyes. And as family, I say that there is nothing I wouldn't try, no risk I wouldn't take to get him through this. Im willing to try this if you are. I trust you, Mako. I believe you will get him through this."

"Thanks." Mako said, relieved to have support. "It means a lot to hear that."

He turned his attention to Kai. He needed to get the fire he was going to Bend close enough that it would heat him up and actually have an effect but not so close he risked burning Kai. That meant he would have to raise his leg so that it was in front of the boy's prone body and- Mako grimaced at the thought- hold it there. On top of that feat of athleticism he would have to focus on controlling the fire with his foot, something that few Firebenders had mastery of. As good as he was, Mako knew he wasn't a Master. But he couldn't let that deter him. For Kai's sake, he had to succeed. He took a deep breath and said, "I'm ready."

His right leg slowly rose off the ground to leave him balancing on just one foot. When it reached waist height it stopped. He held it for a moment there before channeling his Firebending. A massive flame suddenly burst from his foot. It was hot enough to light a few papers that it didn't even come in contact with. Kya and the prisoners jumped back in fear at the sight of the huge fire. However, as soon as it appeared it died down to a manageable size flame, like what might be on a torch. "I got it, guys." Mako said calmly. "Trust me." He slowly swung his foot around so that it was in front of Kai, right where he wanted it. Then he forced himself to settle down. He could be here a while.

**Inagi**

They walked on the dirt road in near total darkness. Around them was a vast and open countryside, with just the occasional hill. Ahead was a line of mountains that obscured the shaded horizon. At the base of those mountains was their destination, a heavily guarded prison embedded deep into the stone. Behind the two Benders were the twinkling lights that happened to be none other than Republic City.

Inagi glanced at his partner. Terus seemed completely at ease with the long walk they had made all the way since Republic City. In fact he always seemed completely at ease. Always controlled, always content. That was something that Inagi both respected and hated about Terus. The Firebender always seemed content with whatever he was doing and wherever he was, as though life couldn't possibly get better than it was at that moment. While respectable, it was infuriating to Inagi. Not only did it lead to them doing things like walking when they could have just driven all the way to the prison like Inagi had suggested, but it also meant Terus wasn't going anywhere. Figuratively, at least. Terus had no ambition, and that meant he would always take orders from fools like Goru and hopefully one day Inagi himself. With no drive to rise, others that are less deserving would pass him up again and again. He would always be pushed aside when he shouldn't be and Inagi believed Terus should be the one to push all others aside and rule. He was undoubtedly powerful enough for it. He just lacked the desire.

Inagi on the other hand, wanted to get himself some power, even if admittedly he wasn't as powerful as his partner. The way he saw it, there was always two places of power: the authority and those who opposed the authority. He knew that the authority in this case- the Avatar and all her friends- would never accept him as a friend and let him rise through the ranks so he joined up with the other side of the coming war. He was going to ride on the hope that he had made the right choice and that the Red Lotus would soon wrest the authority away from the Avatar. The key though, would be to survive. It always was. If the Red Lotus was able to take control of the world he was way closer to power than he had been before. If they were defeated, he could still find a way to survive to start his climb again some other way. If he outlasted his rivals and survived everything thrown at him he would therefore be the last one standing, the one with the power. Then he had complete freedom to do as he wished, no restrictions whatsoever. He smiled at the thought. That day might come soon. But for now he had to handle business.

"Are we almost there yet?" He asked sourly. We would have been there already if we had just taken the car."

Terus nodded. "Absolutely. But we wouldn't have the same level of stealth that we enjoy now."

Inagi snickered. "Who needs stealth? It's not like these losers could defeat us. Hell, we could have just take them out FROM the car. Not even get out. Just drive down to where they are keeping Zaheer and take him with us. They couldn't stop us."

"The reason for stealth is because we want to defeat the guards and get out as fast as we can." Terus tried to explain to the younger Bender. "The closer we are to the facility the quicker we can be in and out. If we had taken the car they would have noticed us from a distance and had time to prepare and hunker down."

"Like I said, they can't stop us, prepared or not." Inagi said confidently. He and Terus were both far too powerful for these guards to stop.

"But they will have time to call for help, and bring in people that can be a match for us. Do you want to face the Beifongs? Or even the Avatar herself? We don't want to be trapped in there and captured like Zaheer was. What good would we be then?"

"I'm not scared of the Beifongs either." Inagi said sharply. "None of them can beat me."

"Maybe not alone, but they are a very powerful family." Terus countered. "You may not have a choice but to face two or three at once, and then you will surely lose."

"Fine." Inagi said. "Whatever. Let's just get on with it." They were silent as they walked from then on. About ten minutes later they spotted a troop of guards searching the road. They must be close now. The two snuck to a small mound next to the road and his behind. The troop passed right by, never knowing that there were intruders in their presence.

Inagi and Terus soon saw the massive doors that marked the entrance to the most heavily guarded place on the planet. It had a very dramatic and old feel to it, and that was only heightened by the darkness of the night. White Lotus guards swarmed all over the place ready for anything. Or almost everything. They had no idea what forces they would soon come into contact with.

"There it is." Inagi breathed. "Zaheer's prison."

"Apparently it used to be an Airbending temple way, way, back." Terus said. "One of the small ones, without a city living around it. The White Lotus reconstructed a bunch of it to be used as a prison specifically for Zaheer and his Airbending abilities."

"Interesting." Inagi muttered sarcastically. He wasn't at all interested in a history lesson, just getting the job done. He stepped forward. "Okay, let's go take it down."

Terus gripped Inagi's shoulder. "No. Not yet. We shall wait until morning."

"What?" Inagi exclaimed quietly. "Why not now? Why must you make us wait for every little thing? I swear, I have spent most of my time since we started working together just waiting until you decide some time or another is the perfect moment to do something." Then he added sarcastically, "But no sooner. No, we're doomed if we try that. Would never work."

Terus sighed. "If you have to know, I want us to wait because in the morning we will have sunlight. I'm a Firebender, remember? I have more power when the sun is out. So we're waiting."

"I still think it would be better to strike now." Inagi argued. "This is the night shift, so at least half the prison is sleeping. Plus anyone that they might call in for help. Striking now would be the best way to go."

Terus shrugged. "Then go ahead and take on the prison. But I'm going to find somewhere to nap until the morning arrives. Good luck." Without a further word he walked away towards the mountains to find somewhere safe.

"Son of a bitch!" The other Red Lotus member said. Grumbling, he followed his partner into the darkness.

A guard glanced over to where they had been standing just a moment before but saw nothing. All that was there was just shadows and rocks. Just an empty night, like all the others. Satisfied, the guard kept patrolling.

**Mako**

"Are you sure you don't need to stop?" Kya asked, worried. Mako was still the position he had assumed several minutes ago to warm up Kai. Now, however, every muscle was twitching, needing a release from the torture he was putting his body through. Just holding the fire in place was becoming near impossible. The only thing that held Mako together was the knowledge that he might be the only thing standing between Kai and certain doom. He couldn't fail the kid now. Not after everything they had been through.

"I'm f-fine, Kya. This is nothing compared to what happened on Kuvira's Colossus." But his body betrayed him. She saw how exhausted he was and ordered he stop right now. She felt Kai's forehead. "It's okay, Mako. He's plenty warm now. You can stop now. You've done enough."

Mako realized she was right. With a grunt he let the fire die out and lowered his leg. He found a nearby chair and sank into it. He was completely wiped out.

"You did well, Mako." Kya said soothingly. "You need to rest now. Kai will still be here when you wake up, I promise."

Mako didn't answer. He was already drifting, thankful to finally be able to rest after such a long and grueling day. He finally slept.

He woke with a start. He looked around and realized that it was still dark. He noticed that everyone was asleep. Jinora, Kya, Kai, and all four prisoners were out cold. He saw signs that others had come through here, probably Lin. Whoever it was, they were gone now.

He got out of the chair quietly so as not to wake the others and creeped his way in the dark to Kai, just to make sure he was doing alright. As he approached the teen he had the feeling that something was wrong, but he couldn't place a finger on what. Something about Kai seemed different. But what was it? Then it hit him like Asami's motorcycle.

Kai's chest wasn't moving up and down like everyone else's normally did. There could only one reason: Kai wasn't breathing.

Kai was dead.

**Before the angry reviews appear about what a monster I am, just remember that I warned you. I ended every chapter with a reminder that I am of the dark side and a warning to join while you can, with cookies as incentives. I never promised a happy story, and im sorry if that's what you were expecting. There has now been death, and there may be more. If it's any consolation, I didn't want Kai to die. He was just an unfortunate casualty of story. I'm sorry, and I will understand if you are upset. I hope that dosent keep you from checking out my other story, Dragon of the West, and the future project I have planned(It should come out later this week). Also, check out a guy by the name of Solo Gamer. He's a good friend of mine and I think you guys would like his writing. And lastly, don't forget to turn to the dark side(we have cookies!).**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello and welcome back to Revenge of the Red Lotus! I'm sorry for the pain I have caused, but you can't deny that it was one hell of an ending to last chapter. But don't worry; I won't be killing any major characters again. At least for a while. But let's not dwell on the sadness, and turn attention to this chapter. I'm very excited for this one because Terus and Inagi, the first two Red Lotus members we met in the very first chapter, are finally getting their moment to shine in some action. I think you guys are going to love their abilities. I guess I should just shut up and let you guys get on with reading it. Enjoy!**

Chapter 7

**Jinora**

Jinora woke up feeling refreshed and energized. She felt really good in the chair she had awoken in, it was rather comfy. She had the feeling that today was going to be a great day, and she felt ready to meet it. It was a wonder what a good night's sleep could do to you. But before she did any day seizing, she would wait here. This chair was just way too comfy to leave so soon. Hell, there wasn't even any reason to open her eyes. She should just relax and enjoy this while she could.

As she sat there she heard some voices some distance away. They were whispering, but in the way when you don't want to make too much noise, not the kind where you were trying to withhold information from those nearby. Whoever it was, they didn't want to wake Jinora up. How nice of them. Of course, she happened to be awake anyway, but they didn't know that. She tried to hear what they were saying, but all she could make out were their hushed voices, no actual words. Oh well. She would probably find out soon enough.

She heard a door open suddenly and someone stride loudly into the room. Whoever was already in this place -the police station, she remembered hazily- shushed loudly at the new arrival. Jinora didn't know for sure because she still had her eyes closed, but she imagined these people pointing at her to inform this person needed to be quieter.

The new arrival began speaking to the others. He was a man, with a very deep voice. Jinora realized that it was her father. Unlike the others, he spoke loud enough to make out the words. "We just finished searching again. Still no luck. Has anything happened here?"

"Besides what happened earlier?" That was Kya. Jinora was sure that it was her Aunt. "Nothing since then. Jinora is doing okay. She's just sleeping off the effects being in the snow did her. But since she's been asleep the whole time she still doesn't know."

"Poor girl." It was Uncle Bumi. "She went through so much out there last night, and fought so hard to get him back. I have no idea how we are going to break it to her."

"We'll figure something out when the time comes." Tenzin answered. "For now, let's just concentrate on finding Ikki."

Jinora was hit hard by a renewed feeling of fear and guilt. She had been sitting there looking forward to the day while Ikki was still missing. In her morning grogginess, she had forgotten about her sister's disappearance. Now, she realized, she didn't have time to relax. She had to find her sister as soon as possible. Ikki could be anywhere. There was no telling what that psychotic Waterbender girl had done with her.

Jinora jumped to her feet and rushed to the adults. "We need to go out looking for her immediately. The chances of finding her will only get worse the longer it takes so we need to try and find her as soon as possible."

They had all jumped when she sprang forward, surprised to see her awake. After hearing her words, they all exchanged glances with each other. Jinora was slightly confused. What was that all about?

"Don't you worry about that, Jinora." Tenzin said gently. "I assure you, we are making the greatest efforts to find Ikki."

"Yeah!" Bumi said with a crooked grin. "We'll have her back before you know it."

"Actually, there is something else I am going to have to ... show you, Jinora." Tenzin said carefully. "We are going to have to go see something back at the house."

"But what about Ikki?" Jinora asked. She noticed in the corner of her eye that Varrick and the others in the jail cell were listening in while they pretended to sleep. Jinora couldn't really judge them for it, however. She had done the same thing just a moment ago.

Tenzin and Bumi exchanged glances. "Your Uncle Bumi is going to lead the search while we are back at the house. Okay? Then we'll be back to searching for Ikki."

Jinora grudgingly nodded. She didn't like the idea of going to look at something while Ikki was still missing. She didn't understand why she had to see this before they searched for Ikki. Couldn't it wait until she was found? Jinora doubted that whatever this was could be as important as finding her. But she would trust her dad's judgment for now. Maybe whatever this was would be important after all.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take her?" Kya asked her brother. "It is my fault after all. It should be me that shows her. I'm for what happened."

"No, Kya." Tenzin said. "It's not your fault for anything that happened. You did your best, and without you we never would have had a chance to begin with. It's no one's fault, least of all yours."

"I know, I know." Kya said. "But I just wish I'd been able to do more. Maybe I can do that by showing her what happened."

"Don't beat yourself up over it." Bumi said. "It's not your fault in any way. You did way better than I would have, and I'm a General."

Jinora wanted to ask what they were talking about, but knew that doing so would only slow them down. They needed to find Ikki now before it was too late.

"I know." Kya said, eyes downcast. "It's just I-" She couldn't seem to find words.

"We understand." Tenzin said, trying to comfort his sister. "We all regret what happened, me especially." He glanced at Jinora. "In the end, it's really my fault for sending them out there."

Both Bumi and Kya attempted to argue, but where quickly silenced by a glare from Tenzin. "It was me who put them in the danger, so now it's up to me to set everything right." He walked back out the door of the police station and beckoned for Jinora to follow him. "Come on, Jinora. Let's get this over with."

They walked to Oogi, Tenzin's sky bison. He greeted them with a loud grunt and wafted his tail, creating a mighty wind. He was already prepared for travel, as Tenzin had ridden him to the police station. Father and daughter both leapt several feet into the air, both landing neatly in the saddle.

As Oogi took off for Air Temple Island, Jinora happened to look to the east and saw the sun just beginning to creep over the distant mountains. It was dawn, what was perhaps her favorite time of the day. Over the past couple of years she had gotten up early every morning to watch it with Kai. She wondered if he was watching it right now.

No, she thought. Don't worry about Kai right now. He's not the one missing, Ikki is. You have to concentrate on finding Ikki right now because she's the one in danger, not him. Maybe she is watching the sunrise. Maybe.

**Terus**

Far away, another person was watching the sun grow over the mountains above him. He could already feel its strength inside of him, and it felt great.

"Now we can strike, Inagi." He muttered to his friend. "With the sun to grant us her great power, I will be unstoppable."

"Makes no difference to me." Inagi said lazily. He slowly got up from the ground where he had been lounging. "At least now there won't be quite as many mosquitoes."

Terus sighed. "Sometimes I wish you had been born a Firebender. Then you could understand how good it feels to embrace the sun's heat. Its warmth is added to our own and makes us that much more powerful. You have no idea what it's like. It's indescribable."

Inagi shrugged. "Cool. Good for you. So how about you quit talking about it and use it on those guys over there?" He pointed at the door to Zaheer's prison, which was very heavily guarded by a small army of White Lotus sentries. More had arrived overnight as a precaution sent by Lin Beifong after the message Terus and Inagi's comrade Jiqi had made on the roof of President Raiko's building.

Terus's eyes briefly flashed in anger, but he quelled his rage before he could kill Inagi. "Fine then. There is no point waiting any longer, if you are ready." He stood up from behind the dune they had used as cover. He walked, completely in the open as if he owned the place.

Inagi followed behind, nervous about their bold, straightforward approach. His eyes darted around, nervous about the sheer number of enemies. "Uh, Terus, I was thinking we would try some kind of sneak attack first. Ya know, surprise 'em. This isn't exactly the smartest way to go about this."

The sentries quickly spotted the Red Lotus members and shouted the alarm. They scrambled into position to defend their prison. Now suddenly prepared, they posed a much greater threat to their attackers.

"What's wrong, Inagi? I thought you weren't scared of them." Terus said with a smile.

"I'm not scared." The younger Red Lotus member said indignantly. "I just don't like tossing the element of surprise out the window. It has a tendency of coming in handy. Please tell me you have a plan."

"Of course." Terus said confidently. "Just guard my back and watch the show. These guys don't know what's coming their way."

One of the White Lotus stepped in front of the others. He looked to be older than most of his comrades, so he was probably one of the leaders. He called out, "Stop right now! Who are you and what are you here for? Tell us now or we will attack!"

"Have no fear!" Terus called back, not slowing down. He kept a pleasant smile on his face as he addressed the guard. "All I'm here for is to go in there and visit an old friend."

"We can't allow you to get in there without proper authorization!" The White Lotus man said. "Now stop moving or you will be hurt badly." A massive rock was sent flying through the air and landed right next to Terus. He didn't flinch at the threat, just held his gaze ahead. Inagi on the other hand, was practically hyperventilating behind him. He didn't like the idea of being crushed under boulders, especially when he had done nothing to earn it. Yet.

"This is your final warning." The man said. "Stop now or we will stop you by force."

"No." Terus answered, his smile disappearing. "This is your final warning. Get out of my way if you value your life. I'm not going to repeat myself."

The man sighed. He didn't want to attack strangers, but they had given them multiple warnings. The duo had been warned that the White Lotus would attack. Shaking his head, he pointed at Terus and Inagi. "Take them down, men!"

Attacks of three different kinds of bending were all fired at Terus from dozens of benders. They all exploded into him with a large bang. Inagi threw himself out of the way and barely avoided his death. Half a second slower and he would be a bloodstain on the ground via a combination of water, fire, and rocks.

There was a large cloud where Terus had been. The White Lotus man nodded to his companions. "He's dead. There's no way he could have survived that." He turned his attention to Inagi. "Now let's get the other- Aaaaaahhh!" The man's orders were cut off when he suddenly caught fire. He had literally just caught flame out of nowhere, like a leaf under a magnifying glass. The man –as he felt the excruciating pain of burning alive- was desperately trying to figure why he was on fire. It seemed impossible. There hadn't been a jet of flame or any other attack. He had simply burst into flame.

"You should have heeded my warning, fool." The voice came from the cloud of dust. The crowd of sentries all cried out in shock as a figure appeared from the smoke. Terus walked out, completely unharmed. He watched as the first White Lotus man collapsed to the ground, still burning.

"B-but that's impossible!" One man shouted. "He is supposed to be dead! There's no way anyone could have survived that." That man suddenly burst into flame as well, much to his comrade's surprise.

Terus smiled. That was his special subset of Firebending he had developed years back. He alone was capable of creating independent flames. Every other Firebender had to shoot their flames from their hands or feet, but Terus could make a flame appear in the distance just by focusing on the spot. Terus called his invention Wispbending. With it, his destructive ability was only limited by his focus and his vision. He was next to unstoppable. Even the attacks they had initially thrown at him had burst into flames and disinigrated instead of colliding with him.

Seeing a second ally fall made many men lose their nerve. They broke ranks and retreated, desperate to get away from their dangerous enemy. They knew they were no match so they ran. Terus would not stand for that, however.

"I gave you the chance to leave." He said angrily as more men burst into flame, one at a time. "You should have left when I offered you the chance. Now it's too late." As he gazed upon the chaos he quickly created, several men escaped into the prison. Terus couldn't stand for that. At his deadly gaze the doors suddenly caught on fire. It didn't last long, on the metal door, but it sent them a message that he would get them no matter where they hid. He would get to them soon enough, and then they would meet their fates. For now he had to take care of the others.

Terus didn't notice that there was one man that had gotten behind him. This man had a spear and was charging at his enemy with a determined rage. Before this man could attack he was stopped as a solid wall of sand rose up from the ground in between him and his target. The sand rose even higher until it was much taller than the man, who had the sense to back away, abandoning his attack. The guard ran, knowing he was out of his league against such mighty foes. Unfortunately it wasn't enough as the wall of sand crashed upon him like a wave before he could get away, crushing him.

Inagi laughed at his victim. "You should have known better than to challenge Inagi, the most powerful sandbender in the world!"

Terus meanwhile was finishing off the last of the opposing forces. Just a few of the Red Lotus guards were left standing, and only one of them was actually fighting back. Terus was surprised to discover that this man wasn't quite as easy to defeat as the others. He was a young Waterbender, probably in his mid-twenties with the dark hair and tanned skin his people were known for. His semi long hair was pulled back in what the Water Tribes called a wolf tail. Terus had been unable to set him aflame like he had the others because this White Lotus guard had pulled a bunch of water to completely cover his body so that he loosely resembled a Spirit.

Terus grinned. This one wasn't quite as easy to defeat as the others. Maybe he could last a little longer and make this interesting. The kid had been able to draw something that Terus wouldn't be able to catch on fire as a defense against his overwhelming attacks. Smart.

"Give it up." Terus told the Waterbender. "You'll have to come out to breathe eventually and I'll be able to kill you then."

The young man ignored his words and charged forward. It was a foolish but brave attack. Behind his opponent, Terus could see the last of his allies slipping inside the massive doors to escape their deaths. Terus made a decision upon seeing this. He decided he would spare this one. His comrades didn't deserve a man of his caliber, who fought unfightable odds without giving up.

As the Waterbender drew near Terus lit a furious fire, almost an explosion, at the man's feet. To his surprise the man didn't deter his attack at the sudden blaze but threw a right hook at the Firebender. Terus dodged the attack, but realized too late that it was just a distraction. He was blasted by a torrent of water and flew back several meters.

Terus landed on his feet and skidded back a bit from the force of his landing. The Waterbender attacked again before Terus could get his bearings with a flying wave of ice spikes. To the White Lotus man's surprise they melted before they could reach the Firebender that had wiped out his friends. Before he could react a large boulder knocked him to the ground. Before he could get back to his feet all the nearby sand and dirt creeped over his body, holding him down tightly. He struggled against his entombment, trying desperately to break free. The boulder rose from the ground and levitated over to the young man, hovering above him.

"Don't kill him." Terus ordered his partner quietly.

Inagi glanced at Terus. He wasn't used to seeing a merciful side to the Firebender. "Are you sure?"

Terus nodded. "He's earned it. Besides, I have plans for him. Just keep him constrained for now." Inagi nodded and tied up their prisoner. The White Lotus survivor struggled as Inagi tied him to a nearby barren tree. "Stop this now!" He shouted at them. "Breaking him out won't solve anything! He's crazy and he won't help you with whatever you're trying to do."

Inagi nodded to Terus to indicate the man was subdued. They both began walking to the doors of Zaheer's prison, completely ignoring the sentry's complaints.

"Please listen to me!" The young man pleaded to the retreating duo. He struggled against his bindings desperately. "You don't want to let him out. You can't control him. Don't release him on the world again! Please!"

"Persistent, isn't he?" Terus muttered to Inagi as they reached the door. He knocked on it and nodded. "Just as I thought it would be. Solid metal to prevent anyone but a Metalbender getting in."

Inagi popped his knuckles with a grin. "I can get this out of the way. Just give me a little bit of time." He took a deep breath and began moving his fingers slowly, almost as if his hands were spiders.

"The good thing about sand," he said to Terus, "is that it is very, very small. If I use it carefully, I can fit it into some really tight places, such as in between these double doors. Once they are in place I can use them to push," he made a ripping motion with his hands, "against the doors and create some space. Then, as quickly as I can before the space settles back down, I fill it with more sand. Then I do that again and again and again until the door is open enough for us to fit through." As he said this the huge doors creaked as they were split apart.

"Good plan." Terus said as he watched the doors open inch by inch. "But how are we going to get through if there is a mound of sand in the way? We still wouldn't be able to walk through."

Inagi glared at him, annoyed. "By then we can hold the door open ourselves. Duh. We won't need the sand to hold it open anymore."

He motioned with his head to the door. "It's open enough for you to get now. Open it the rest of the way."

Terus pulled the doors apart and they both slipped inside.

Inside was a large, cavernous room only dimly lit by lanterns that hung from the walls. At the other end of the cave was an elevator that would lead to Zaheer's actual prison cell. In between them and the elevator were a large number of White Lotus members. Half of them seemed ready to defend against the intruders, but the other half cowered against the back wall in fear.

Terus sighed as he prepared to fight them. He wished they would provide a united front against him. That would be much more fun.

Terus took them all out quickly, even the ones that were hiding against the wall. Many fought bravely, but none were able to survive against his power. Soon the duo was surrounded by corpses, their path clear.

As they were walking Inagi pointed out a telephone that had been busted during the fight. "I guess they got the word out. We'll have to hurry." They inspected the elevator. "It looks like you need to be a Metalbender to use this. Without one of them, it won't budge." Inagi remarked.

"You aren't a Metalbender. So how do we get through?"

Inagi grinned at his older companion. "Just because I'm not a Metalbender doesn't mean I can't find a way to get through this. Watch and learn." Using his Earthbending he pulled a large chunk of stone out of the mountain wall. Bits of it began breaking off at one end until that side consisted of a large point.

At Inagi's command the giant stone point flew across the room into the elevator. It tore apart the metal door as though it were butter and crashed into the other side of the elevator shaft. Inagi followed that by lifting the rock high into the space above the elevator. He propelled it back down at a high speed with his Earthbending. It collided with the floor of the elevator with a crash. The collision tore it apart and carried it down the elevator shaft, landing far below at the bottom. A couple of voices cried out in shock below. They obviously hadn't expected guests.

Inagi created stone steps that spiraled the elevator shaft, always descending farther below. They followed the steps in silence, eventually reaching the bottom. Before them lay only two Metalbenders and a single metal door. Terus smiled. They had found their target. He quickly disposed of the two guards, defeating them with ease. Now there was nothing to stop them from freeing their comrade.

Inagi broke the metal door open by ripping out all of the stone it was connected to. The door fell in with a crash, revealing a dark room. In the middle, chained to the floor and floating above the ground was now the infamous Red Lotus member Zaheer. His long hair had been black before but was now turning gray as he got older. His face was ashen after the long years without sunlight. But his eyes were still bright with the fire of passion, of the determination to carry out a dream.

He looked up as they entered. "I knew this day would come. Now I shall be set free, and we will rise like phoenixes to remake the world into something beautiful. Are you ready? The Red Lotus is back, and we will be stronger than ever." He dropped to his feet and held his chained arms high above his head. "I'm ready to finish what I set in motion three years ago. The world had best pray that it is ready. It will need everything it can get to stop us now. Soon it will be…. free."

**Are you guys as excited to see Zaheer as I am?! I knew as soon as I came up with the concept of this story that I wanted Zaheer to come back and be central part of this war. He was one of my favorite LOK characters and he was easily the most effective villain, even though Amon had him beat in the epicness department. What made him so great wasn't his power but his words. He didn't want to hurt people, he was just doing what he believed would make the world a better place by freeing it from its authoritive shackles. Whether he was right or not is a matter of perspective, but at least he didn't fit the "after power for power's sake" cliché. **

**Now that that's off my chest, what did you guys think of this chapter? Anything you liked in particular? Anything I should work to improve on? Let me know in the reviews. Speaking of which, I NEED MORE REVIEWS! This will be the seventh chapter and this story only has five reviews, and four of them are one person. I don't like the idea of shaming you guys, but you are really dropping the ball here. It's kind of sad.**

**If you liked it follow, fave, review, yada yada, be sure to check out my other stories, look up my friend Solo Gamer. If you want a cookie turn the dark side, Darthlane out.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Welcome back to another chapter of Revenge of the Red Lotus. This will mark the eighth chapter of this gripping series, which admittedly isn't a milestone but still good, right? I mean, I like the number eight. Why can't it be special?**

**Anyway, the story below features some of your favorite characters like Bolin, Mako, Tenzin, Jinora and the rest, so I think you might like it. Because, you know, it has those characters. Because you like them. Yeah. You know what let's just get on with it already. You can quit reading the bold words and get on with the story. I'm serious. You can quit reading. Why are you still reading this? You think you're a rebel because you are still reading this? I wasn't kidding when I said it didn't matter. You can honestly just get on the story already. Geez what's wrong with you? Just read! GAWD! Freaking hippies, man!**

Chapter 8

**Zaheer**

All Zaheer could feel was intense relief. Finally, after three years of waiting he was going to be free once more. Free, like he was always supposed to be.

It had been horrible the first time he had been imprisoned. Locked away from the others, all alone. He had been unable to do anything but wait. It had been hell. Then, years into his imprisonment, after he had all but given up, there had been a strange feeling inside of him. A new power. He had discovered that he could now bend. Somehow, by an amazing act of fate, he had become an Airbender.

Finally he had allowed himself to feel hope again. Now with his new power he could save the world. He had trained, alone on top of a mountain, to make himself as capable as he could. All he had was what he could remember from Laghima's preachings and what he could come up with on his own. He had been forced to come up with his own ways to train, since he lacked the luxury of the ancient Airbender knowledge that Tenzin had been able to accumulate. Slowly but surely he had become powerful, a skilled bender in his own right.

Then, when the time was right, he had escaped. With the help of his friends he began his crusade to right the world. He needed to set it free, as he had become free himself. They had accomplished much, freeing the Earth Kingdom from its tyrannical queen. Then they had set their sights on a bigger target: freeing the world from the rule it had been subjected to for the last ten thousand years. They were going to kill the Avatar, and kill her for good. But unfortunately they had failed, and Zaheer's friends, P'Li, Ghazan, and Ming'Hua, had all been lost. He was again alone, and on top of that defeated.

Zaheer had been imprisoned for an additional three years after that. This time, as much as he had thought it would be impossible, it had gotten worse. He was imprisoned just as he had been before, but now he was plagued by demons. The knowledge that his friends were dead, that he had failed, and that the hope he had gotten far too briefly was crushed. It had been horrible. He would die having failed himself, his friends, and the world when they all needed him so dearly.

But now he was back.

He watched the two figures that had entered his prison. One was tall with long black hair and a regal face while the other was shorter and stockier, with his face covered by a tanned cowl. Zaheer had a guess as to who the first, taller man was, but the other man was a mystery to him.

"Terus, I presume?" He asked with a nod.

Surprised, Terus asked, "How did you know that?"

"The men who helped my team three years ago were more than happy to inform me on what I've missed out on during my first imprisonment. They told me about the happenings with Amon and Vaatu and everything else that has occurred since my imprisonment. What happened to those men, by the way?"

"Most of the ones that helped you try to kill the Avatar were captured. The rest made it back, but are in hiding once more."

Zaheer nodded slowly. "A pity for the ones who were captured. They were good men. They will be remembered. So, assuming by your presence here the Red Lotus is finally ready to act?"

Terus nodded. "We shall bring the world to its knees so we can finally achieve the goals we set so long ago. Are you willing to help us achieve that, Zaheer? Are you still a faithful brother, ready to achieve justice for the world?"

Zaheer gazed at the man. "I'm ready to do whatever it takes to set the world free. Nothing will stop me."

Terus smiled. He had been unsure if Zaheer was still one of them, since he had never met the man. But now he had no doubt that Zaheer was a friend and could be trusted. He started intently at the chains that bound Zaheer to the earth. One by one they all exploded from the intense heat created by his gaze. When the last shackle fell Zaheer smiled. Once more he was free. And he would never be held down by the world ever again. He would die before that happened.

He held out his hand to Terus. "Thank you, brother. You have no idea what freedom means to me. I have had so little for so long that I have learned to treasure what I do get."

Terus took the hand, now convinced that Zaheer was an ally. They shook hands, brothers in arms. But when it ended and Terus tried to pull away Zaheer's grip remained strong. Zaheer smiled and threw Terus into a wall with surprising strength. Terus had not seen the betrayal coming. The other Red Lotus member burst into action, throwing sand in Zaheer's direction. Zaheer cartwheeled away from the attack and blasted his opponent with air. The man was thrown into the wall, bouncing off with a painful thump. Both of his opponents momentarily stunned, Zaheer flew through the open door and slammed it shut behind him. He heard both men let out cries of rage from the other side.

"I'm sorry I had to do that." He said to them.

"Why do this, Zaheer?" Terus asked angrily. "We are allies! We are on the same side! Did you lie when you said you wanted to save the world?"

"We were allies, Terus. Back when the Red Lotus was founded our aim was true and we were going to change the world, and set it free. But over time the Red Lotus, like its parent the White Lotus became misguided. You have lost your way and I can't stay with you if you continue. With or without the Red Lotus I will remain true to my goals."

"You may not see it but I do. Goru leads you for his own ambitions and wants simply to rule. Like most men he sacrifices his morals and the good of the world for a chance to sit on the 'throne' that men have been fighting for all of time to have. All he wants now is power for power's sake. And who knows? Maybe he will take it away from Raiko. Maybe not. Either way he is not the man to have that kind of power." Zaheer chuckled. "No one is. The throne that everyone fights for is destroying the world. In their fighting, everyone destroys everything until only that throne is left. Therefore, to save everyone, I must destroy that throne and wake everyone up from the nightmare we have been in. I will free humanity from the oppressive cycle we have been lost in. I will save us all by getting rid of the evil authority that controls us all."

Then, more softly, he said, "You, of course, are more than open to join me. I would be happy to accept help in freeing the world. It is a difficult job and could be better dealt with if the workload is shared. The same goes for your friend in there."

"Inagi." The other man said absentmindedly.

"You fool." Terus said. "You delusional fool. Goru will destroy you. He will destroy you if your mission doesn't kill you first."

"Ah yes, be sure to let him know that I send my regards and that he is willing to join me if he chooses. Just not the other way around. Also, he should know that even though I won't be rejoining the Red Lotus I still don't consider him or any of you my enemies. Just because I'm no longer a member doesn't mean that I don't support you. As long, of course, as you all don't get in my way. Is that clear?"

Terus refrained from answering. Zaheer backed away, knowing that the door would get extremely hot very quickly. Deciding that there was little else to converse about, Zaheer floated into the air, relishing the pure joy of flight. It was sad that Tenzin and the other Airbenders weren't open minded enough to join him in the skies. Maybe one day they would discover what he had, and Laghima before him. This sweet, sweet freedom was impossible to describe to anyone who had never felt it for themselves.

But for now he alone had the skies. He alone could look down on the people as if they were ants and he, their god. He alone was free.

His eyes closed. "Let go of your earthly tether. Enter the void. Empty and become wind."

He flew up and out of the prison, blasting the doors out of the way just like he had dreamed at nights for three years.

Finally after all this time he could see sunlight again. He hadn't expected to miss it quite as much as he had, but that made it feel even better. The only reprieve he had had at his disposal had been the Spirit World, but that was in his mind. This was the first his eyes were able to see the outside again. It wasn't that important in the grand scheme of things, but it did feel good to truly see again. Sometimes it was the little things that were the sweetest.

He set his sights towards Republic City. That was where he could deal the biggest blow to the power structures of the world. That was where his righteous crusade must begin.

That was where he would end the tyranny of this world.

That was where the world would be free.

**Mako**

He sat in a chair next to the bed that held his dead friend. He held his face in his hands because he couldn't bear to look at the face of that goofy, quick witted, well intentioned kid. Of all the people to die, why did it have to be him? Kai had been so vibrant, so full of life. He had been one of those people that could draw a smile from anyone, Tenzin being the exception. Even now it seemed pretty unlikely that he wasn't up and about bugging someone or trying some reckless new Airbending move. The temple seemed like a much darker place now than it did yesterday.

Mako remembered back to past three years he had spent with Kai. All the times Kai had gotten them all in some kind of trouble like back in Ba Sing Se, and the times he had saved them from trouble like back at the Northern Air Temple. All the times he had made people laugh. All the times he had made Jinora blush. Mako wanted nothing more than to give this kid another chance, because he had sure as hell deserved one.

Mako braved a glance up. Was he just imaging it or was Kai smiling? As if somehow he had wanted people to know they shouldn't be so hurt by his passing. That it was alright, that they should move on and try and enjoy their own lives. But no, Mako was probably just imaging it.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when the door to the small room opened suddenly. To his relief it was only Bolin and Opal.

"You okay, bro?" Bolin asked. He removed his arm from around Opal and instead put it on Mako's shoulder. "Listen, we're all hurting from this. If you need to talk, we are here to listen."

Mako sighed. "Thanks, Bolin. Really. It's just that nothing is really worth talking about, and I don't think I'm ready anyway."

Bolin rolled his eyes. "Don't pull the whole 'I'm a loner' crap right now, Mako. You might think you're strong enough to get over this on your own, but you're not. No one is. But that's why you have us. We're your family. Trust us to support you, Mako. We can."

"I know that, Bolin. I would trust you guys with my life. It's just stuff that I have to deal with, okay? By myself."

"Then let us help, Mako." Opal ordered. "You don't have to deal with all of this alone. We're for you no matter what."

Mako smiled slightly. "I hate it when you guys gang up on me." He folded his hands. "Look, I don't know why, but I kind of feel like I...failed. I feel like I somehow let down Kai. Like I wasn't there for him when he needed me. And that I couldn't do enough to help him. I feel like it's my fault."

"Bro, it's not your fault." Bolin said. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"I know." Mako said sharply. "But I can't help it. Every time my eyes close I see myself, wasting time instead of being there for him. I can't get rid of those thoughts. I keep seeing back when I was heating him last night and thinking I could have done more. That I could have made the difference. That I should have been able to save him. Its killing me, and I don't know why."

"Wow." Opal said, concerned. "You have that kind of anxiety bottled up inside of you?"

Mako nodded. "I can't make it go away."

Opal glanced up, lost in thought. "This seems like more than just survivor's guilt. I think you have a great big ball of stress hidden within you somewhere. Mako, how long have you felt like this?"

Mako shrugged. "I haven't felt particularly happy for years now. Not since... since Korra left."

"Bro, we all were bummed when she was hurt and she left." Bolin said. "But what does that have to do with Kai?"

Opal gazed at Mako like he was some rare and fascinating animal. "You never gave up on her, did you?" She turned to Bolin. "It doesn't have anything to do with Kai, at least not directly. Kai's death and Mako's guilt is actually just adding to the stress that has been building up inside him for a while."

"I'm not getting it." Bolin said.

Opal tried to explain it in a way Bolin would understand. "Imagine if you were holding up a very heavy rock, and then someone piled another one on top of that. That's how Mako feels inside right now. It's crushing him. He hasn't felt right since he and Korra broke up. Now this is added onto that, and he can't take it."

"Oh!" Bolin exclaimed. "Now I get it. Sort of."

"You still love her, don't you?" Opal said softly. "You never stopped."

Mako closed his eyes. He didn't want to be here. He didn't want to face them. He didn't want to admit that they were right. That he still loved Korra after all these years. That he had spent all this time hating himself for letting her go, for letting the best thing that ever happened to his life just walk away.

"_She wrote to her_." He said silently, tears welling in his eyes. Only his mouth moved so Bolin and Opal had no idea what he was revealing. "_She wrote to Asami. But she didn't write to me. I thought that after everything that we had gone through, everything we had witnessed and experienced together, that she would trust me. Why didn't she trust me? What made Asami different? Worthy of trust? Where did I go wrong? Why did I ever lose her? Why did I let her go? Why why why why why!"_

Before Opal and Bolin could react Mako flew out of his seat and pushed past them, shoving the door out of his way. He couldn't bear to be in there anymore. They shouted after him. "Wait! Mako! Come back!"

Bolin and Opal wisely didn't follow Mako's retreating form. "Honey." Bolin whispered to his girlfriend. "What was that about? I'm still confused. What's wrong with Mako?"

Opal just sighed.

"Opal!" Bolin squealed. "Tell me!"

**Tenzin**

Tenzin walked through the halls of the temple, his daughter Jinora at his side. He looked as formal as he usually did, the perfect combination of elegance and composure that he believed an Airbender should be. But on the inside he was anything but. He wanted some reason to go do something else, any excuse would do. He felt like he was leading a lamb to the slaughter, only the lamb happened to be his daughter's heart. How could he justify breaking it, leading her to what was perhaps the saddest moment of her young life? He felt like he was the one doing this to her, not whoever had frozen Kai to begin with. Why did he have to do this?

As they were walking Mako suddenly came around the corner, bumping into Jinora. She would have been knocked down if she didn't catch them both with Airbending. Tenzin felt a small feeling of pride. She continued to improve greatly at Airbending, honing her skill and reflexes. She would surpass him one day, he had no doubt. "Whoa!" She said. "Why are you in such a hurry Mako?"

Mako didn't answer. He didn't even apologize. He just fast-walked away, as though running away from something. Tenzin watched him disappear around another corner and out of sight. What had gotten into the boy?

"Wow that was rude." Jinora commented. "What was with him?" After her father didn't answer, she added, "Did you notice that he was crying? Why would he be crying, Dad?"

Tenzin didn't answer. He couldn't bear to be the one who told her. He wasn't strong enough to break his little girl's heart. It was better just to show her. It wouldn't be him who had to tell her that way. It would be reality who would tell her then.

All too soon they found the door they were looking for. Tenzin opened it slowly, allowing Jinora to go in first. He didn't want to see her face when she saw the boy.

"Hey, Opal. Hey Bolin. What's going on in-" She stopped mid-sentence. Tenzin looked away, anywhere but at his daughter. He couldn't see Jinora's heart break so soon after Ikki's disappearance. It would be too much to take.

"K-kai?" She asked slowly. "No. It c-cant be. No. No no no no no no no no no no. You can't be-"

She let out a sudden cry of anguish and fell to the floor. Bolin and Opal rushed to her aid. She sobbed uncontrollably, and Tenzin felt his heart break once more, followed by a sudden and uncharacteristic burst of rage. Who DARED do this to his daughter? They had better hope that he felt merciful when he found them, because they would need it.

He joined Bolin and Opal in embracing Jinora, there to comfort her in her time of need. Any thought of maintaining composure was gone. All that mattered was Jinora, and trying to cure her grief. It was all that mattered. Tenzin resolved to never let his daughters feel this kind of pain ever again. He would protect them from anything. Anything.

**Varrick**

His eyes were closed. To the casual viewer he might look like he was asleep in the dark prison cell. In reality he was deep in thought. His mind was whirring, twisting this way and that, constantly searching for the solution to fix this mess. There had to be a way. There was always a way. And Varrick knew he could find it, because he always could. He was the greatest engineer in the world, and he truly believed that he could fix any problem that came into his path. No matter how well hidden the answer was he knew he could find it.

Someone had made an attempt on the president's life, and Varrick was being blamed for it. He didn't blame them for pointing the finger on him. After all, he had attempted to kidnap the president just a few years ago. Raiko had every reason not to trust him. This time though Varrick was innocent of whatever was going on. Bolin's brother, Miso or whatever his name was, had described the guy he had fought against. Some guy in a mechasuit, who had a grudge against Varrick.

Unfortunately that didn't narrow it down any. There were tons of people who considered Varrick a business rival, or were at least jealous of his success. On top of that, Varrick couldn't count the number of people he had fired over the years for not meeting his vision exactly how he wanted. He felt he was justified in getting rid of the guys who couldn't fit with his business, but he doubted that they felt the same way. There were dozens of talented people who might have a vendetta against him, and the engineering knowhow to be a threat. But as far as Varrick could tell none of them would have been able to create this monster that Mato had described. It had demolished a good portion of a skyscraper, and had survived a fall from the top completely undamaged. Not even Varrick's own mechas could have made it through that. This thing was one durable son of a bitch.

Suddenly a crowd of people entered the police station, making the four inmates and the two cops on duty look up. Raiko led the way, fury on his face. "Get him up! He's going on trial, it's happening now!"

Behind him Lin Beifong glared at the wall, trying her best not to get involved. The two cops, seeing the president, their boss, and an ensemble of troops had entered their workplace, were wise to follow his orders promptly. They grabbed Varrick and led him to Raiko. Zhu Li followed, eyeing Raiko with distaste.

"Put him in the Satomobile. He's going to court." Raiko ordered. "I think we can all agree he will be found guilty for the crimes he has committed." He glared at Varrick, daring the man to make matters worse by talking back.

Instead, Varrick turned to his wife. "Zhu Li, I'm going to need you to stay out of this for now."

"No!" she exclaimed. "I'm not going to let you go against them alone."

"Honey, I'm going to need someone on the outside, and there isn't anyone I trust more than you. I need you to go ahead with the plans we came up with. You know which ones. I'm afraid we might need that before this is all over and I know you can deliver on it without me. In the meantime try to find us some sort of leverage, anything you can find. We need stuff we can use, and I think we are going to need it fast." He nodded his head over to Raiko. "He might not believe so, but I think we have another war coming. And I'm willing to bet this one is probably going to be the worst one yet. These guys aren't like anything I've ever seen. We're in for a slugfest, so make sure we have Tenzin and the others ready." As if an afterthought he added, "also, we're likely to need the Avatar. Try to get her if you can."

Before she could answer he shouted out loudly, "I have committed no crimes! The very idea! Heck, Raiko, I would believe you having kidnapped yourself over me kidnapping you! I can't believe you could even accuse me, the coward you are." He glanced back at Zhu Li and winked, flashing his cocky smile.

She nodded. As much as she wanted to help him, she knew she would be far more valuable to Varrick taking care of his resources and gearing up for whatever these Red Lotus people were going to throw at them. That was where she was really needed. He could survive without her until then.

"How dare you!" Raiko said heatedly. "You can't accuse me! That's preposterous!"

"What's ridiculous is your hair." Varrick said as the cops dragged him out the door and shoved him into the police Satomobile. "I thought the person chosen to lead this damn place would at least look better." He was unable to say anything more as the door slammed shut. Even so, he could see Chief Beifong snorting with laughter at the president.

Raiko was fuming, but that was exactly how Varrick wanted him. Angry people tended not to think things through and acted irrationally. Varrick liked to have his enemies, as Raiko was quickly becoming, off their game. It helped a lot when dealing with powerful people. "Now I just need a way to get you under my thumb." He muttered to himself. "Then I can get myself out of this mess. But how to do that, I wonder?" Once again Varrick was left thinking for answers. He could only hope he found them quickly. His enemies were starting to pile up.

**Lin**

She was still struggling to control her laughter when the military Satomobile pulled up. She instantly sobered, completely serious. A group of soldiers rushed out. They all bowed down before Raiko, terror in their eyes. "Mr. President!" one of them said. "We have terrible news! Zaheer has escaped!"

Raiko let out a cry of shock. "WHAT?! What do you mean he escaped? I thought he was under lockdown, hidden deep in the ground. What happened to that? What happened to all of the guards? I doubt even Zaheer could have defeated all of them, especially chained to the ground."

"Apparently two unknown individuals defeated the guards with their bending before releasing Zaheer." The man said to Raiko. "There was one survivor, and he says that they mentioned being a part of the Red Lotus terrorist group."

"No, this can't be happening." Raiko said faintly. "They can't be back. We got rid of them."

"I seem to remember telling you this very thing last night, Raiko." Lin said curtly, arms crossed. "You didn't believe me. You said it was Varrick. Are you going to blame him for this too?"

He just glared at her.

**That is the end of this chapter, ladies and gentlemen! Zaheer is free, Jinora has found out about Kai, Ikki is still missing, Mako is still in love with Korra (like we all didn't know this already), and Varrick and Zhu Li are getting prepared for war. Let me know what you guys think in the reviews, because they are noticeably absent for this story. I wish someone would say something. Also, be sure to favorite and follow and check out my other stories, as well as those written by my bro Solo Gamer. That's all, I guess.**

**Oh wait I forgot about turning you guys to the dark side. Do that, please. We have cookies, no lie**

** -Darthlane**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello and welcome back to another chapter of Revenge of the Red Lotus! this will be my first chapter published as a high school graduate, and coincidentally the first one not published in my programming class. as such im working on a different computer, and this one didnt spell check a bunch of the uncapitalized first words in some sentences and I was too lazy to go fix them manually. sorry guys. anyway its weird for me, because now i have to find a new headquarters of sorts to write and plan, and i am still working out the kinks. but enough about my troubles, you all came here to read a story, and it would be rude to make you wait for it. READ AWAY!**

Chapter 9

**Tenzin**

"I still can't believe it." Tenzin said softly. He gazed out at the sun as it began dipping below the horizon, causing the ocean to ripple in an amazing rainbow of colors. For some reason it reminded him of his brief visit to the Spirit World, with its beautiful array of natural colors and its deceptive peacefulness. It was a truly beautiful sight, but Tenzin couldn't appreciate it right now. Not when one daughter had her heart broken and the other was missing. "How could so much tragedy happen in just a day? it seems impossible."

Pema, with Rohan struggling in her arms, walked forward to stand by her husband. "It is unbelievable, isn't it?" She asked, the sorrow of the past day turning her voice into a croak. "It feels like the entire universe is against us right now, trying to rip us apart. But why us? Why, after everything we've already had to go through? haven't we suffered enough fear? enough heartbreak? why is it always us?"

Tenzin put an arm around his wife, holding her close. Rohan, realizing his containment was in danger of being reinforced, doubled his struggle. "I don't know, honey." Tenzin said softly. "But we will come through this. We will find Ikki and we will all be together again. I promise it."

Pema nodded, a single tear falling down her cheek. "I'm just so scared for them. Kai's... accident made me realize just how vulnerable we all are. Anything could happen."

"Honey, don't think like that." Tenzin warned. "It will only bring darker thoughts. it will lead to a spiraling cycle of fear and depression that you don't want to have, my dear. those kinds of thoughts are the last thing we need right now, for they will only lead to darker places."

Pema pulled away, as did Rohan. the boy scampered away, free at last. Both parents watched him go. "Tenzin, do you realize that Jinora is older than your father was when he faced the Fire Lord? They fought a war when they were just kids, and it looks like ours might have to do the same. I do not what that. I want them to grow up and be happy. i want all of it, with Kuvira, and Amon, and all the rest, to just stop. i want it to stop and just let us live our lives. i want it all to just end."

"Pema," Tenzin said looking her in the eye, "I promise you, here and now, that our kids will all grow up and be happy. Jinora will feel better in time. I will get Ikki back. we will all be together again. And there is nothing in this world that will stop me. not the Red Lotus, not the Equalists, not even Vaatu himself. Nothing. I promise you that."

"I know you will." Pema said, almost a whisper. "But that doesn't stop me from worrying."

They stood in silence for a minute, watching the sun drop, causing the sky to grow darker and darker. It wouldn't be long until night. It only reminded Tenzin of how the past few hours had felt.

Pema finally broke the silence. "Honey, Jinora hasn't eaten anything all day. Can you go take her some food?"

"Of course." Tenzin said, breaking away. He didnt want to admit it, but he had been desperate for something to do, something to break him away from the agony that his mind had become. anything was better than conjuring nightmares of what Ikki could be going through.

He walked across the small temple swiftly to the kitchen where he heated up a bowl of noodles. He made sure that Jinora's dinner was as excellent as he could manage. not only Jinora probably be in need of a good meal, but it was Tenzin's personal goal to never miss a chance to strive for perfection. After the meal was ready he walked to Jinora's room.

He knocked on the door, a simple wooden one as was the norm for the entire temple. Humility was a very prominent trait in Airbender culture. He announced, "Jinora, I have some food for you." He waited a few seconds, but his daughter didn't answer. He knocked again, this time impatiently. "Jinora? Honey? Please open the door." Still no answer. Suddenly fearful, he opened the door, peering inside. Jinora kept her room very tidy and Tenzin could quickly see that everything was exactly where it should be, exactly where it always was. Except for his daughter. "Jinora? Jinora! JINORA!"

The only answer was wind blowing the curtains of the opened window.

**Varrick**

"Is that not enough?" Varrick asked, exasperated. "It seems to me that there is more than enough evidence to prove I'm gui- I mean innocent!"

He had spent the last few hours laying out word after word to a very squat and gruff man who happened to be one of the highest ranking court officials in all of Republic City. all the while he had been forced to listen as Raiko accused him of all sorts of crimes, most of which were ridiculous and laughable in any other situation. unfortunately Varrick had been guilty of most of them. thankfully they were here for one crime in particular, one which Varrick was very much innocent of.

"I'm not convinced." Raiko said scathingly. "I know you have some hand in all of this. You always do because lying scum like you are always involved. You are guilty!"

"Well, it's a good thing that I'm not trying to convince you isn't it?" Varrick replied smartly. He turned to the judge. "Please! You know I didn't do it. Just let me go."

The judge shrugged. he glanced back and forth from these two very important men. The President of the Republic of United Nations arguably the most powerful man in the world, and the owner of Varrick Global Industries, which made Varrick the richest man in the world. little did Varrick know that the judge was taking great pleasure in his position, of being able to decide the fates of the powerful. Calmly the judge said to Raiko, "There is nothing incriminating Mr. Varrick to the crime, Mr. President. I think I will have to let him go."

Varrick grinned as Raiko exploded in anger. "No! I know he's behind this! He was before and he is again!"

Meanwhile Varrick jumped up, making excited hooting noises. "Woo hoo! Yes!" However, he was quickly yanked down by his cuffs, which were chained to the table."Aack! Wow could someone please give me some slack on these? I can barely stand up with these darn things on."

"That's the point." The judge said drily. He folded his hands. "Mr. Varrick, could you please contain your excitement until we are finished?"

"Oh, I uh, sure." Varrick said. "I can do that." He got situated back into his seat.

"Now, Mr. President, we have to let him go." The judge explained. "You and your representatives have been unable to produce any evidence that Mr. Varrick had anything to do with the attack." President Raiko started fuming again. the judge held up a finger before Raiko could say a word. "However, as Mr. Varrick is still a suspect in this investigation, we don't have to free him quite yet." Raiko's smile came alive as Varrick's died. "He can remain imprisoned for as long as three months until a guilty party is discovered and apprehended."

"No!" Varrick shouted. "You can't do this to me!" he couldn't believe this was happening. why arrest a man who was so obviously innocent?

"You heard him." Raiko said with a grin. "You have three months to wait while I investigate your company." He laughed. "You may have slipped out of my hands before, Varrick, but I have you now. You are mine!"

"Do you hear this?" Varrick cried. "He doesn't even care if I did it. He just has it out for me! this is ridiculous."

The judge replied, almost bored, "Whatever issues you and Mr. Raiko have outside of this case can be dealt with outside of this case, Mr. Varrick."

Varrick turned to Raiko. "C'mon! You know I had nothing to do with this. You're wasting time here when the people you really need to worry about are still out there, planning more attacks. you do realize that, right?"

"I am very aware of the situation." Raiko said coldly.

"Then why are you even in here?" Varrick shouted, throwing his arms up- or at least trying to. All he managed was to rattle his chains. "A little kid died and another one is missing and you aren't even doing anything about it. Do you even care? A kid died! But you aren't even trying to find the killer! You're in here accusing me of something you know I didn't do. Have you even spoken to Tenzin yet? set up investigations? Or is this not important to you?"

Raiko rose to his feet. "How dare you? We are making every effort to find-"

"Apparently not." Varrick countered, cutting Raiko off. "Or else you wouldn't be in here wasting time. Or do you plan to blame me for Zaheer's escape too? No? Well then if someone would get me out of these cuffs I have places to be. unlike you i would actually like to help bring the Red Lotus down."

"You're not going anywhere." Raiko said threateningly.

Varrick sighed. "How about this? I will help you find these people if I stay out of prison. I have all sorts of contraptions that can help, and a new one that me and my wife are very proud of. Speaking of which, I also have Zhu Li, who is much more useful than all of those contraptions and probably half your army. What do ya think?"

Raiko looked around thoughtfully. "Perhaps. So all of your machines would be at my command?"

Varrick eyed him, suspicious. "Within limits. It's still my stuff. I don't want you going all Kuvira-crazy with em."

Raiko walked over to Varrick's bench and held out his hand. "so you will go free and in exchange you will assist in my investigations? I think we have a deal."

Varrick shrugged and shook hands with the president of Republic City. He knew Raiko had some ulterior motive, but it was a deal he had to go with. He would rather be free and able to stop Raiko if necessary than locked up and helpless.

He grinned. "Now let's get me out of these cuffs and catch some anarchists!"

Raiko shook his head with a sigh as he waved over the bailiff.

**Zaheer**

He watched as President Raiko, surrounded by an army of guards, and interestingly, Varrick, exited the courthouse. Zaheer was surprised to see those two together. From what he had heard they did not get along very well. Just goes to show that even bitter enemies can become allies with the right incentive.

Zaheer considered his chances. There was a very large number of guards, and it was likely that many of them were capable benders. Zaheer knew that he could defeat any of them, but as a group they might prove a match for him. Zaheer quickly decided that it would be better not to attack quite yet and wait for a moment when Raiko was more vulnerable.

But for now it was time to find somewhere to operate from. A temporary base, where he could watch the going-ons of Raiko and others who might pose a problem for him. at the very least he had to find a place to sleep. He needed to regain his strength after spending years being half starved by his guards in that hellhole of a prison.

He was about to take off when a figure landed to his right. Zaheer jumped away, prepared to defend himself, flying back a distance only an Airbender was capable of. Only his defensiveness proved to be unnecessary. The figure, whose identity was hidden by the darkness of the night, did not attack. Instead, this mysterious person knelt down and bowed.

Zaheer was still distrustful. As far as he knew he had no allies left. "Who are you?" He asked. "Reveal yourself."

The person raised their head. Zaheer peered closely and couldn't have been more surprised about who it was.

Jinora.

"Why are you here?" He asked, still on his guard. It was a very unexpected turn of events but that didn't mean that they would end up well. He knew full well that she thought of him as an enemy, since he had opposed her friend the Avatar on previous occasions. However he didn't have any ill will towards the girl. She wasn't his enemy, at least not at the moment. as long as she did not threaten his goals he had no reason to harm her. He checked around to see if there was anyone else, but it seemed as though she had come alone. interesting.

"I suggest you leave." He told her. "I have no quarrel with you."

"I didn't come to fight." She responded, rising to her feet. "I came to ask a favor."

Zaheer was surprised. What could this girl want from him that her father couldn't accomplish already?

"A favor? Like what?" He asked.

"Y-you know a form of Airbending that my father doesn't know and wouldn't teach me even if he did. You know how to use Airbending for violence.I-I need that. I want you to teach me how to do that."

Teach her? Zaheer was amazed at this turn of events. An apprentice- and Tenzin's daughter no less! She wanted him to teach her. Zaheer didn't even know how to begin to imagine what this would be like.

"Why do want to learn this?" He asked.

Her eyes flitted around nervously. She was very apprehensive about what she was going to say. "I need to learn it because... because I need to-." she couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. she took a deep breath and finally said, "I need to kill someone. I need you to teach me how.

Zaheer cocked his eyebrow. "Really? And who would this person be?"

"The one who killed Kai. I need to avenge him. She has to pay for what she's done, for what she took away from him."

"Ah yes. The young girl among the Red Lotus. i heard of her, and also of what happened to your young friend." He smiled. "If you are sure you want to do this, I would be more than happy to teach you, Jinora. But do not take this lightly, because i wont."

She looked relieved. "Thank you. Now I can bring him closure and bring her to justice."

"Just remember, Jinora." Zaheer said. "As you're new master you must obey my orders. In addition you must not contact your friends. I am sure they would try to foil my plans. Do you understand?"

"Yes." She answered, steel in her voice. "I knew going into this I had to leave them behind. They wouldn't understand. they wouldn't be able to understand that i need this. not even Dad."

"That's true. Those who don't understand what is necessary will always hinder those who do. This is the right choice, even as painful as it is."

"Wait! One thing." Jinora said.

"What is it?"

"Promise me that you won't hurt my family. Or my friends. They stay out of whatever you're planning."

Zaheer nodded. He could agree to that. He only had eyes for destroying the power structure of the world. He had no problem leaving her family and friends alone. As long as they stayed out of his way he had no reason to mess with any of them.

Jinora took a deep breath. "Then teach me what you know, Master Zaheer. I am your humble disciple."

Zaheer waved his hair out of his eyes and smiled at his new apprentice. "Good. Let us begin."

**And thus this chapter draws to a close. guys, for those of you reading this now i have something to say that breaks my heart. after much consideration i have decided to place this story on hiatus until i'm ready to continue. the reason why is because between this and my other stories i am juggling three long term projects that will likely all be at least a hundred thousand words each. meanwhile i have to sort out characters, plotlines and everything else while each story moves forward at a snails pace. two stories seems a lot easier to manage as far as keeping a fairly consistent publishing rate.** **i know some of you might be a little disheartened by this, but i promise you i am not abandoning this story. I WILL RETURN. i promise you that. it just might be a little while. in the meantime i would really appreciate it if you checked out my other two stories, as you can tell by the reviews people seem to like them, a fact that warms my heart. i also think it would be awesome of you if you checked out my friend SoloGamer on here. he has some amazing stories on here, and he updates at a much faster pace. **

**As the great Arnold once said, "I'LL BE BACK!"**

** -Darthlane**


	10. Chapter 10

**Welcome back! For most of you, this will seem like a normal chapter, but to anyone who has been keeping up with the story you will know that it has been over a year in between the last chapter and this one. Yeah, that hiatus I mentioned before took a lot longer than I expected. But I'm back, and in my opinion, better than ever. Seeing as this is my first chapter for this story in a long, long time, don't expect any huge story twists in this one. If anything, this is more of a recap and character building chapter, more for me to ease back in than anything. But don't think that nothing happens, because I've tried to fit some content here for you to enjoy. Hopefully enjoy it is exactly what you do. So for everyone who is reading, thanks for sticking through with me, I'm grateful.**

**3 days later**

After spending three long, agonizing, introspective days on his own, Mako finally returned. He was ragged, dirty, and unkempt, and it was easy to tell he had not eaten or slept much in his time away. As he entered the monastery on Air Temple Island he walked slowly, dragging his feet and slumping.

He was tired, he was broken, and he had spent far too long trapped alone in his own mind. He had been forced to come to terms with his feelings for Korra, and had been spending the past few days trying to figure things out. He had suppressed his feelings since they had dated, and had tried to focus on his work since. He had been miserable for the most part, only occasionally breaking out of his near constant sour mood. It was difficult to break his feelings for Korra, however. She was one of the most constant things in his life, even when she had been gone after suffering from the Red Lotus' poison. Even in those years Korra was often talked about, always just there, right at the corner of his eye. How could he possibly get over her if he could never get her out of his mind?

But he knew that their time was over. He wasn't hers anymore, and she certainly wasn't his. They were never going to be together again, and Mako had to accept that or he would never escape from his misery.

He had to get a grip of himself, because falling apart like this was only going to put his friends in jeopardy, both because he couldn't protect any of them when they needed him by being absent, and because they cared about him. He didn't want to cause his friends any pain. So he had to be there for them.

So he had returned.

"Mako!" someone shouted, catching Mako's attention. It was Bolin, with Opal holding his hand. Bolin ran over and engulfed his brother in a tight bear hug. He quickly put Mako down however, saying, "Oh man, you stink! Where have you been? We've been looking for you for days!"

"I, uh, just needed some time to myself." Mako told him. "I had some stuff I really needed to think about."

"Well I hope it went well. Doesn't really look like it, but that's whatever. When you slay your demons sometimes you have to get a little dirty."

Mako laughed, something he hadn't done for a while. "Yeah, I need a shower. We can talk after I clean up, ok?"

After Mako had showered, he found Bolin and Opal outside sitting at a table. Both were eating sandwiches, and Mako noticed a third plate at an empty seat at the table. His stomach rumbled. He had not had much to eat recently, and now he was starving. He sat down with them and dove right in. "Thank you!" he said through his full mouth.

"You're welcome." Opal said cheerfully. "But it's Pema you should thank. She made the food."

"When I see her, I'll be sure to do that." Mako told her.

"So let us in on what happened." Bolin said. "Where have you been?"

"I have been all over the city." Mako said, swallowing a bite of his sandwich. "Walking around, just thinking. But I did stop by our old home, from when we were kids. I also went by the streets we lived on, when we were a little bit older. And," Mako paused for a moment, his throat catching, "Mom and Dad's graves."

They were all silent for a moment in an awkward pause. Opal broke it by asking, "So what were you thinking about, Mako?"

Mako's gaze dropped down to the ground. "A lot of stuff. Mostly just everything that has happened since we met Korra and all of this crazy stuff started happening. Korra, Asami, you guys, Kai… Just a bunch of stuff that has been weighing on me pretty bad. But I'm done moping now. We have a lot to do, and I can't help anyone just sitting around. Ikki is still out there, the Red Lotus are a threat, Zaheer is free, and we have to keep the city from falling to pieces while Korra is gone."

"Plus Jinora." Bolin said.

"Jinora?"

"Yeah, she kind of went missing too. Right after you did." Bolin said.

Mako put his head into his hands. "This is probably because of Kai."

"The fact that you returned before she did isn't a good sign." Opal said thoughtfully. "You are an adult, and you know this city better than almost anyone. You can disappear for a while and it's not so worrisome because we know you can handle yourself. But Jinora… she may be incredibly powerful, but she is still just a kid. Since she hasn't come back yet, it's much more likely for her that either there is something preventing her from coming back, or she is staying away for whatever reason. Either way, it's not good."

"This is all my fault." Mako said. "I couldn't save Kai."

"Mako, no it's not." Bolin said, putting an arm over his brother's shoulder. "You can't put the blame on yourself. Did you not do everything you could to save him? You are the reason he had a chance at all. You are a hero, bro."

"But it wasn't enough." Mako said. "I couldn't do it."

"People fail sometimes. You are human man, it happens. But wallowing in guilt that doesn't even belong there isn't helping anyone. You need to concentrate on finding Jinora and Ikki instead, and bringing those guys to justice."

Mako let out a deep breath. "I guess we need to find some leads, then."

Bolin smiled. "That's right. Let's get to work."

Tenzin breathed in and out slowly, meditating. He tried to concentrate on emptying his mind of all thought, letting his senses expand and feel. It was a part of becoming one with nature, to free yourself of your mind and let only the world remain.

But recently it had just become so difficult.

He couldn't concentrate like he normally could. It was crazy for him to expect himself to let go like he normally could. Jinora and Ikki were both missing, and Kai was dead. Ikki they at least had some idea who took her, but Jinora's disappearance was simply a mystery. Where were his little girls? Where?

His heart truly hurt. He loved them so much, and now they were both gone. What was he to do? He needed to find them as fast as possible, but he had no idea where to even start. He could only hope that Lin could find some clue as to where either of them could be, and until then he had to wait. Waiting was normally something he had no trouble with, but now he was too anxious to even meditate.

He needed something to actively do. He needed to do _something _or he would go insane from the worry. Any sort of distraction would do. Scratch that, not any. He had to do something productive. Something that could help someone.

Tenzin stood up, planning to go ask Pema. But then he noticed someone walking around among the trees nearby. It was Meelo, casually strolling. He must not have noticed that his father was nearby, because lately Meelo avoided Tenzin at every turn. He wouldn't even let the Airbending master get out an apology.

"I really hurt his feelings before." Tenzin pondered. What with everything that had happened the past few days, the distance between him and his son had taken a backseat in his mind. He felt guilty. All of his problems, and he hadn't even worried much about the one he could actually try to fix. He needed to repair his relationship with Meelo.

Silently, Tenzin followed his son, who walked to the edge of the island, where a small cliff overlooked the water. Meelo sat down, dangling his legs over the side, and audibly sighed, gazing out at the vast ocean. Tenzin stood a few yards back, afraid to interrupt. He decided to let his son believe he was alone for the time being. Give him some peace until Tenzin was ready to have the talk they needed but neither of them wanted.

_What is he thinking about? _Tenzin wondered. _Is it the things he sees, the sea and sky? Is he thinking about their beauty? Or is it something else, a memory? His friends? A girl? Or maybe, like me, he has been pondering the negativity of the world. What happened to his sisters, and Mako as well. Kai's death. The Red Lotus returning. What could it be?_

After a few minutes, Tenzin finally called out to his son. "Meelo."

The young Airbender whirled around, nearly slipping off of the cliff but saving himself with a bit of Airbending. To Tenzin's relief, Meelo didn't try to leave, but did have a very hostile expression. He had never been one for hiding emotions well.

"Meelo, I am so sorry." Tenzin said, speaking from the heart. "I'm sorry for everything. I never should have yelled at you, and never should have said what I did. I know you love Jinora and Ikki. I know you would do whatever it takes to save them. I was wrong to say anything to the contrary."

Meelo's expression softened. "I know why you yelled, Dad. There was a lot of things at stake, and I let you down. I didn't take it as seriously as I should have, and we got lucky that it didn't cost us."

Tenzin chuckled. "You can't take blame for that. I didn't do any better than you did at finding anything, after all. Look, I think I know how we can fix things a little bit. I think it's time I taught you some more advanced moves."

Meelo's jaw dropped in shock. "WHAAAAAAT? Are you serious, Dad?" He leapt high into the air, hooting.

"Wait a moment before you celebrate, Meelo." Tenzin said, barely covering the smile the threatened to emerge. "Remember, I expect you to take this training seriously, and you need to show respect towards your teacher. Also, nothing unless you have all of your chores done!"

"Yay! Thanks Dad!" Meelo shouted in Tenzin's general direction.

"I mean it about the chores!"

The two tourists could not be mistaken for anything but a couple. They were both unusual, the tall woman with raven hair and the beautiful face, and the gigantic man covered in scars. But they happily walked through the streets of the Fire Nation capital, holding hands, and whispering to each other. Even despite the man's appearance, it was hard to see them as much of a threat. They were too wrapped up in each other that they failed to be aware of the world around them.

Or, at least, that's how they seemed. In reality, they were two very accomplished assassins and powerful benders. They were making a very unorthodox route towards the palace, not going directly to it to throw off any less than dedicated spies that might be following them. If someone was really committed to keeping an eye on them, then there wasn't much they could do about it, but the appearance of a happy, harmless couple on vacation might throw off someone.

But Lyri knew that it wouldn't really matter. It wasn't like there was anyone that could stop them. She and her husband Tymo eventually found themselves on one of the regular tours of the palace, where they could see historical artifacts of famous rulers such as, Sozin, Ozai, Zuko, and the first female Fire Lord, Azula. Lyri almost laughed when she saw that one of the exhibits contained a comb once used by Azula. This was an important historical artifact?

Using their long experience in stealth, the married couple managed to slip away from the group. They already knew where to find the former Fire Lord. Almost every day, Zuko was known to go outside and drink jasmine tea by a small pond under a tree. He also fed the turtleducks that inhabited it, but that detail was inconsequential. More importantly, on the other hand, was the knowledge that he spent this time alone. He allowed no one except for Izumi to join him in his daily tea. This meant he would be alone, without guards or any form of help. A perfect target.

Sure enough, that's where they found him, leaning against that tree and watching the turtleducks circle around and around. Lyri and Tymo approached from behind, unnoticed. This was almost too easy. And Goru thought that he would be a problem. Wow.

She flicked her wrist, and a couple of leaves broke off from their branches, floating down and turning towards the old man below. She was a Waterbender, and her specialty had become using plants, such as grass or leaves, as her weapon. No one ever took notice of them, because they were harmless. That is, until they were in the hands of a master assassin. No one ever saw it coming.

"Will you two leave?" Zuko said irritably. "You are not supposed to be here while I drink my tea. Or for you two, ever."

Surprised, Lyri panicked and sent the leaves at high speeds towards the old man. To her shock, he easily burned them away. No. That was impossible. No one had ever been able to do that before.

Zuko stood up, and turned around to face them. He took a sip of tea and said, "Now please leave, or I will have to make you."

**That's it for this one. Relatively short, and not as action packed as some of the previous chapters, but it did help me remember my groove with this story, so I think from here on things will be back up to speed. Thanks for reading! See you next time! And don't forget to join the dark side (we have cookies!)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Welcome back to another chapter! I really liked how this one came out, so I hope you do too. Enjoy!**

"Don't falter now, Jinora." Zaheer warned. He regarded his new pupil as he she worked. "You have come so far in just three days. You must maintain your resolve. Again, tell me, why are we doing this?"

"To become strong." Jinora answered automatically. "And we become strong to have the freedom to act."

"Good." Zaheer said with a slight smile. "And what are you wanting to do with your strength and freedom?"

"I want to save Ikki." Jinora said with determination. "I want to put stop to the ones who took her. The ones who… killed Kai."

Zaheer nodded. "Then keep going. You must master this ability to save her, and to stop the Red Lotus."

She tried again. She spotted a hawk in the distance. She breathed deeply as she tried to manipulate the air around the bird. This was incredibly difficult. Not only did it involve working with air in the distance instead of air in front of her, which was something that it had taken a long time to master under her father, she also had to use the nauseating technique that she had learned the day before from Zaheer. She was supposed to take the air around the bird, and take it away. She was still having trouble wrapping her head around the technique.

She had learned it yesterday. Zaheer had caught her a small mouse, and he held it in his hand. It struggled its hardest to escape the master Airbender, but he maintained a solid grip on the tiny creature. "I want you to concentrate on the air around the mouse." He had said. "I want you to take that air, and remove it. Put it in a bubble, where no air, not even in its tiny lungs, remains."

"But won't that kill it?" She had asked.

He didn't answer her question, just ordered, "Do it."

Reluctantly, she had drawn the air away, leaving only a void around the mouse. It was weird and alien to her, something that she should have realized was possible but had never thought of before. All throughout her life, the air had always been around her. She could always feel it. It was always there, a comfort, something that she knew. But that bubble of space she had created, it was empty of anything. Just the dying, suffocating mouse. She couldn't bend anything in that space, and that was so weird for her. She had hardly slept that night, but because of her first time killing or her new power she didn't know.

"Focus on the task at hand!" Zaheer warned in the present. Jinora shook her mind from her thoughts and concentrated on the bird. She forced herself to draw away the air from the hawk. Suddenly, it plummeted from the air, its wings no longer having anything to push off of to keep it airborne. It had to be suffocating, as well. Jinora forced the airless bubble of space to follow, removing air from the falling hawk's path to the ground. She saw it hit the ground and knew it was dead. She felt a small pang in her heart. She had killed again. How long would it be until Zaheer made her do that to a human, like he had famously done against the Earth Queen?

"Good." Zaheer said. "You are making tremendous progress."

At least there was that. "Thank you, Master."

"After a bit more training, you may soon be ready to take them on and save your sister." He told her. "But for now, let's call it a day. You have made impressive improvements in such a short time."

They began their walk back to Republic City. Zaheer had decided that they would not use any mode of transportation, because it would make Jinora stronger. But she suspected that it had more to do with the fact that he enjoyed being back in the open world again.

Jinora had been skeptical on her first day with her new master on how they would sneak in and out of Republic City unnoticed. After all, both of them were quite well known and people were searching the entire city and the surrounding area for both of them. But Zaheer had proved to be capable of surmounting every problem Jinora had seen him face yet. He was possibly the most capable man Jinora had ever seen. There was a reason that he had been one of the most securely imprisoned people in the world. And that was before he had gained the ability to Airbend. From the way he flitted through the heavily scrutinized city unnoticed with ease, to his impressive Airbending abilities, to even just the way he spoke, Jinora found herself becoming more and more impressed with the renegade Airbender. Korra might be the only person in the world capable of facing him one on one, and that was simply because she was the Avatar.

"Be sure to get plenty of rest tonight, Jinora." Zaheer advised her. "I have been taking it easy on you so far. Your real test begins tomorrow. We will see what you are truly made of."

"Now please leave, or I will have to make you." Zuko said to the two strangers. He tried not to show it, but he was actually very surprised to see anyone here. He had been lost in thought, and had not expected anyone to come for at least another hour or so. They had been near silent approaching him, even the giant man. Zuko had been lucky that he had barely heard the snapping of leaves in time to know something was wrong.

Zuko didn't know who these two were, but it was obvious that they were assassins. There were countless people that would want him dead, but very few of those had the money to pay for such quality killers. And the attire of the two combined with the strange abilities that the woman had, and probably the man as well, gave him a strong hunch that these two were members of the Red Lotus. If they were, then this made sense. He knew that an attempt was made on President Raiko's life just the other day, so they must be making a play on world leaders. Thus, Katara, Toph, Raiko, Hakoda, Desna and Eska, Wu, Tenzin, his daughter Izumi, and Korra were all likely in danger for various reasons. He would need to warn them.

Assuming he survived of course.

The large man smiled brightly. He carried a strangely friendly demeanor for someone so intimidating. "Thank goodness you survived! Now we can officially meet!" He bowed deeply to the former Fire Lord. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lord Zuko. Your legend precedes you, and so far you are more than living up to what I have heard. I am Tymo." The woman rolled her eyes at the man's formality and respect.

Zuko bowed back. "I would say that it is a pleasure to meet you as well, Lord Tymo, but you have interrupted a dear time for me, and I fear your intentions here are less than friendly."

"You would be right to assume that, Lord Zuko." The woman said more seriously. "We are here to kill you."

Zuko sighed. "I thought as much." He reflected on her assassination attempt. Leaves? At high speed? He had never heard of such a thing, and it had never occurred to him that such a thing could be a weapon. He recalled that Katara had used the water in plants on occasion, so he assumed that this assassin must be a Waterbender. He still had no clue on what the man, Tymo, was capable of.

"Please take it as a sign of respect, my lord." Tymo pleaded. "You are a great threat to our plans moving forward, and we can't afford to leave you as you are. I hope you understand."

"Tymo, cut the crap, please." The woman said. "I love you, but you are making this a lot harder than it has to be. We are wasting time here instead of killing him."

"I can't kill him like that, Lyri my beloved." He answered. "You know it's not my way. And your way failed, so it has to turn to my specialty, a battle."

Lyri flustered. "Shut up. You saw his reaction time. I doubt even Terus could have killed him unawares. Even he would be where we are now."

Zuko wondered at that name, Terus. Could he be the leader?

"Please don't take offense, darling." Tymo said. "I meant nothing by it."

"So should I assume you two are members of the Red Lotus?" Zuko asked. He already knew they had to be, but he needed to make sure.

"Obviously." The woman answered, annoyed.

"She means yes. We are." Her lover said hastily. "But you won't get the chance to tell anyone, so there was no point in learning that, my lord."

"I disagree." Zuko said. His mind was whirring, trying to come up with some sort of plan. How could he make it out of here? "Knowing the identity of who is trying to kill me is preferable to never finding out."

Tymo smiled once again. "I suppose that having that knowledge may put your mind more slightly at ease before your passing."

"Indeed, it does." Zuko came to the conclusion that his best chance was simply to attack while they were in conversation, when their guard would be somewhat down. "Actually, is there anything else you could tell me? I have been rather curious about the inner workings of your organization. One thing in particular I have been wondering is who-" He lashed out suddenly with flames.

Amazingly, the woman drew the pond out as a shield in time to block Zuko's attack. The ducklings flew off as their pond had suddenly disappeared out from under them. Tymo seemed completely shocked at the deceptive first strike, but Lyri had very clearly been ready. Zuko could already tell that this was going to be one hell of a fight.

He sent a much stronger flame at the wall of water, and it collided in a huge explosion of steam. Not only did it evaporate all of the water, but it sent Lyri flying back as well.

But no sooner had Lyri vanished when Tymo was in the fight to take her place. Except he came completely covered in a thick body armor of stone. And he was charging at Zuko at an astonishing speed.

If Zuko hadn't jumped up and pushed off Tymo's attack, he would surely be dead right now. But the technique he had seen Aang use dozens of times, even without Airbending to assist him, had saved him. But the force of the blow still sent Zuko flying backwards, before he landed and rolled back several times before landing on his feet and skidding to a stop. "Thank you, Aang." He muttered breathlessly.

But no sooner had he landed when several projectile leaves were flying at him. Zuko barely managed to get a shield of flame up before they peppered him and the wall behind him. Then he noticed a truly terrifying sight. Tymo was facing him, and pressed one of his feet hard against the ground, and it actually sunk into the brick. Then Tymo pushed off and flew at Zuko. The former Fire Lord barely jumped out of the way, and Tymo crashed completely through the wall. Judging from the subsequent crashing noises he heard, Zuko could tell that Tymo had gone through several other walls as well.

Zuko didn't want to know what would happen to him if he was hit directly with that attack. How many people had already seen their end as a massive rock golem charging at ridiculous speeds?

Zuko ran as more leaves were peppered at him. He used the tough pillars shields. Soon many of them were reduced to dust upon receiving the attacks. Zuko was still having trouble fathoming how mere leaves could cause damage like this.

He needed to take that advantage away. Dashing around one of the pillars, he launched a fireblast at the tree, and it burst into a large flame. Many of the leaves burned away instantly, and the rest were quickly drained of all water and thus unusable by Zuko's Waterbending opponent.

Lyri was furious at this. "Damn you!" She screamed as she drew water from the dying tree and the surrounding grass. Realizing that her quantity of water was suddenly becoming very limited, she drew back somewhat and kept her weapon around her instead of pressing her attack.

By now Tymo had returned. He saw his partner's state and quickly came to a conclusion of what the situation had become. "Lyri, we need to retreat. Your water isn't going to last much longer."

She shook her head, glaring at Zuko. "I'll be fine. We just need to hurry up and kill him."

"But what if you run out?" he asked, the worry obvious in his voice. "You would be defenseless."

"I'll be fine." Lyri growled at him. "Don't worry about me."

"But-"

"If it comes down to it, you can protect me, can't you?" she asked him. "Or are you not the powerful Earthbender I thought I married?"

He sighed. "Fine." It was obvious he still had his misgivings, but wouldn't argue the subject anymore.

Now, more careful, the two assassins used their numbers advantage to keep Zuko occupied at all moments. Zuko was forced to spend all of his attention stopping attacks of all sorts from every direction. He was never allowed a chance to think, only to react. Soon, they had him backed into a corner with nowhere to go.

"You have fought well, Lord Zuko." Tymo said. "But you have lost here. Accept your fate, for you die here."

Before he could attack, a flame attack hit him in the back of his stone armor.

The assassins whirled around, and facing them was the Fire Lord, Izumi. "Leave my father alone now, or there will be no mercy for you." She told them coldly.

Zuko felt a mix of relief and terror. On one hand, he was no longer facing these two alone. But on the other hand, his daughter was in grave danger.

"Izumi, get out of here!" he warned her. "These people will kill you."

"I'm not leaving you, Father." Izumi told him. "They have no idea who they have messed with. You are lucky I came early for tea today."

"Tymo, constrain that one while we deal with her." Lyri advised her husband. "Divide and conquer."

Zuko suddenly felt himself sink up to his knees into the ground. He couldn't move, try as he might. It was like he had been caught in quicksand. Then before his eyes, a wall rose up, blocking his view as the two closed in on his daughter.

"Izumi! No!" He roared. He threw attack after attack at the wall, having only small success at knocking it down. All his attacks were doing was chipping away at it. He needed something stronger.

He took a deep breath, and did something that he hadn't done for years. He felt the pure energy begin to crackle through him, starting at his left hand. Bit by bit, he directed down his arm and down to his stomach, careful to avoid his heart. Then out of the stomach and up his other arm. Then, finally, out his other hand in a beautiful light of pure energy.

The wall blew up as though it had been hit with powerful explosives. Suddenly Zuko could see the other side, where his daughter and the two Red Lotus members were. But what he saw made his heart skip a beat.

Izumi was on the ground, with rocks cuffing her wrists to the ground. She struggled but could not break free. Standing above her was Lyri, with her water having been turned into a sharp, deadly icicle. Pointed straight at Izumi's heart.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Zuko roared. He couldn't let this happen. Without any conscious thought, lightning burst again from his hand, this time striking Lyri in the back.

She whirled around as she fell, facing Zuko as she died so that he saw the light of life leave her eyes in her final moment.

Suddenly, Lyri of the Red Lotus was now dead.

Tymo roared and the stone armor fell off of him. He crouched down and picked up his dead wife, the tears streaming from his eyes. He cast a painful look towards Zuko, then put her body onto his shoulders and ran away, disappearing from the demolished courtyard.

"She's dead…" Zuko muttered to himself in disbelief. Even during the war, he had never killed anyone. But now he had. He had used his abilities how Uncle Iroh had always warned him never to do. He was a killer now.

Then Izumi rose up, and ran to her father. Zuko came to the realization that he wasn't as bothered by his kill as he should be. Because, as horrible as it was, it had saved his beloved daughter.

"Father!" Izumi yelled as she hugged her father. "You saved me!"

"Yes." Zuko said softly. "I did." He hugged her back. "Izumi, I am so glad that you are safe now. I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you."

**I think that might have been the most fun I've had writing an action scene for anything I've written. The action moved well and was fun in my mind and (in my opinion, at least) surprisingly translated well into my writing. I especially loved adding Tymo's attacks in, which I have dubbed Rhino Style in my head. Because just imagine how scary his attack has to be if you are on the receiving end. It is awesome. Anyway, so now Jinora is learning the dark side of Airbending from Zaheer, and her "true test" is coming up. Wonder what that could be? And now the first casualty from the Red Lotus has happened. Sorry to kill her off some soon, but it was according to my plan. Let me know what you guys thought with the reviews, and be sure to follow and favorite to be sure to catch the next chapter when it hits. Bye!**


End file.
